youth activism engagement participation...activism and participation – and attempt to say why they...

[AI Index: ACT 76/003/2006]

[Front cover]

youth – activism – engagement – participation

good practices and essential strategies for impact

[end of front cover]

Contents

Opening notes

Why an Amnesty International publication on youth work?

Defining youth

Elements of the booklet

Foreword

1. Engagement

Growing internal expertise on youth issues

Connecting with a youth audience

Creating engaging materials

Providing human rights education

Collaboration, coalitions, and communications

2. Activism

Building youth activism into project design

Annual coordinated activism events

Training in activism

Activism around international negotiations

Creative tools, techniques, and technologies

Campaigning on economic, social and cultural rights

Supporting young human rights defenders

3. Participation

Effective youth structures and training

Involving youth in decision-making

Having youth as spokespeople

Taking a life-cycle approach to young members

Coordinating youth work nationally and internationally

Youth meetings and advisory councils

Glossary (of terms in orange in the text)

[box]

Why an Amnesty International publication on youth work?

Amnesty International

Amnesty International (AI) is the largest organization working to protect human rights worldwide. A

democratic movement, AI comprises more than 1.8 million members organized in more than 70 national

sections, with thousands of local, youth, and student groups.

Youth involvement in Amnesty International

Young people aged 14-25 make up almost 50 per cent of AI membership. However, except in certain stand-

out situations, reaching and engaging young people is generally considered an area of weakness for the

organization. Looking on the bright side, an exciting question arises from these observations: if AI is not

particularly “youth-friendly” but approaching one million young people are nevertheless involved – what

will AI’s growth and impact look like as youth work is prioritized and global best practice is considered?

A new international youth strategy Following a resolution at the International Council Meeting (ICM) in August 2003, the International

Executive Committee of AI appointed the ad hoc International Youth Strategy Development Committee to

draft a global Youth Strategy for the movement. The resulting document, adopted by the 2005 ICM, contains

a number of objectives and recommendations to foster engagement with young people and youth

organizations, ensure young people’s participation in the life of the AI movement and enable effective

youth-led activism for human rights impact.

Voluntary toolset rather than mandatory framework

The Youth Strategy does not generally impose mandatory actions on sections or the International Secretariat.

Rather, it indicates broad categories of actions to make the work that AI does both with and for young

people more effective. Indeed, sections are encouraged to develop their own National Youth Strategies

towards the proposed global objectives.

This publication

This publication is designed to complement the International Youth Strategy through the presentation and

analysis of good and interesting practices both within and outside of the AI movement. In this book, we

learn of AI initiatives such as AIUK’s new youth-oriented branding efforts and AI Netherlands’ SMS

messaging projects, as well as more than 50 external case-studies covering activities such as video

conferences, educational curricula, websites, youth forums, advisory councils, protests, fundraising

programmes, and collaboration. Put simply, we feature “what works” when it comes to youth engagement,

activism and participation – and attempt to say why they succeed.

Through such practical and replicable examples, organized around the AI Youth Strategy’s own objectives,

we hope to bring the strategy to life, and provide Youth and Student Coordinators, AI decision-makers and

young members themselves with a sense of the real possibilities innovative youth work holds for growth and

impact.

[end of box]

Defining “youth”

There exist many different and overlapping definitions of “youth”:

For the purposes of the new AI Youth Strategy, youth is defined as those aged 14-25, both in school

and out of school – and this is generally the approach taken in this book.

The UN formally defines youth as 15-24.

Under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, there is a clear distinction between those

under 18 (children) and those over 18 (adults).

Many African and Asian youth organizations allow their members to be aged up to 35.

This diversity is reflected within AI – some consider only students in high school part of their

“youth programme”, while others include 35-year-old post-graduate students within their youth

programmes, as long as they participate through student groups.

Having a clear definition of “youth” allows an organization to make more effective decisions in terms of

choosing partners to work with, developing materials, and appointing activists or staff to hold a “youth

brief”.

[box]

This booklet includes:

Sub-chapters corresponding to each objective of the youth strategy

Case studies of external organizations identified by good practice

Further website links for other similar organizations and initiatives

Case studies of AI initiatives

A list of 24 existing toolkits available on the web related to the subject

Boxes listing the potential pitfalls of youth work – common reasons for failure

Personal tips from nine respected authorities in the field of youth engagement

Boxes including results of a Youth Survey conducted by the AI International Secretariat in 2004

Glossary – words in text highlighted in orange appear in a glossary at the back

[end of box]

Our commitment:

Amnesty International will enhance human rights impact through advancing the central participation

of young people in the protection and promotion of human rights for all, by engaging them in upholding

universal human rights values, by empowering them to take action in their local and global communities,

and by integrating them at all levels of our organization.

International Youth Strategy, 2005

Foreword Amid the flurry of naval-gazing and alarm about computer-meltdown that occupied the media around the

turn of the millennium, a slew of articles and books appeared exploring the generation of young people

whose eldest members were approaching their 18th birthday in 2000 and whose youngest were just then

reaching school age. Journalists and pundits variously (and rather unimaginatively) dubbed this group “the

Millennials”, “Generation Y” (alphabetically coming after “Generation X”), or “the Net Generation”

(after their supposed communication tool of choice).

Perhaps in line with the general surge of optimism that comes with turning the millennial page, the story

these articles told was almost uniformly positive. In contrast with their selfish, slacker Gen-X forebears,

trends were analyzed and numbers crunched to judge that “The Millennials” would be a “great generation”.

They’d apparently get on well with their baby-boomer parents; place renewed emphasis on education

– as well as friends and social networks; and be actively involved in their community. For demographic

reasons, they’d be valued members of the workforce which would adapt around their needs. And they would

be more engaged in the world than any recent generation; wanting to personally make a big difference to

address social problems.

[pullquote]

IN THE LAST FIVE TO 10 YEARS THE YOUTH ‘ENGAGEMENT, ACTIVISM AND

PARTICIPATION’ LANDSCAPE HAS BEEN RADICALLY RESHAPED

[end of pullquote]

Of course, what such Western media stories failed to mention in late 1999 was that a very large number of

“The Millennials” were not part of the “Net Generation” at all. They lived in countries where schools were

too expensive, their parents had died of AIDS, they couldn’t get a job, or where websites discussing human

rights or democracy were blocked. And yet, it is this generation of the South that is truly “great” in size –

those under 25 comprise almost 70 per cent of the population of some of these countries. The fulfilment of

their political, civil, cultural, economic and social rights is the key to the prosperity and security of entire

communities.

That same year, in Seattle, USA, thousands of so-called anti-globalization protesters, a good number of them

young people, had taken to the streets, successfully delaying the launch of the World Trade Organization’s

meetings. Combining direct action with innovative use of the Internet to organize and transmit an

“independent” message unfiltered by the mainstream media, they inspired a connected movement that

helped put sustainable development back on the agenda of international financial institutions. Such

mobilization was far from being only a Western phenomenon: indeed, the growing “social justice

movements” included and modelled themselves on indigenous and peasant movements in the South. And a

year later, across the Pacific, in the Philippines, hundreds of thousands of young people – many alerted via

their mobile phones – came out to protest, and ultimately topple, the government they perceived as corrupt.

Skip forward to 2006, and the World Bank has a global youth blueprint, runs no fewer than four youth-

oriented websites, and has a formal partnership with seven of the biggest youth organizations. In the

Philippines, where many of the young people behind the 1999 protests now work in government, President

Gloria Arroyo maintains a team of “Youth Advisors”, and the Education Department is piloting the delivery

of the science curriculum via mobile phone.

[pullquote]

BY DOCUMENTING WHAT WORKS, WE HOPE TO STRENGTHEN YOUTH-ENGAGEMENT

PROCESSES WITHIN AND OUTSIDE AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL

[end of pullquote]

In the last five to 10 years the youth ‘engagement, activism, and participation’ landscape has been radically

reshaped. A generation that by-and-large believes change to be both necessary and possible has taken

advantage of new tools such as the Internet to learn about issues, tap into activist networks, and organize

action in innovative ways. Many major public and development institutions and non-governmental

organizations (NGOs) have taken a look at themselves and recognized that their existing constituency is

aging and that their approach is out of touch with broader society and failing to connect with new audiences

to ensure organizational longevity. Such organizations, along with the traditional “youth engagement

institutions”, such as youth service clubs, are now scrambling to accommodate young people who expect

high-quality, media-intensive materials, more flexible and effective activism opportunities, and meaningful

inclusion in organizational decision-making.

Young people are often the first to adapt to new technologies and techniques, having less experience of what

came before. (For evidence of this, show a cassette tape to an iPod-toting 14-year-old in the North and ask

whether they’ve ever used one.) Learning from good practices in youth engagement is enormously valuable

– it can be like a window onto the future – for in fewer than 10 years these practices will be taken for

granted (even considered stale!) and something else will be “innovative”. Yet, perhaps because of the

constant change (including high turn-over among those working in the area) or perhaps because of the

dangerous tendency to take youth work (along with young people themselves) less seriously, there have

been relatively few organized attempts to capture nd share “youth” learning among NGOs at the global level.

This publication contributes to redressing this gap – capturing the recent flurry of activity in the youth space

– from peer education initiatives, youth advisory councils and international youth meetings to video

conferences, websites, television networks, protests and grant programmes. Fewer than five of the initiatives

and resources featured existed before 1990, and less than a third are more than five years old. By

documenting what works, we hope to strengthen youth-engagement processes within and outside of

Amnesty International, in furtherance of our mission to ensure that everyone’s human rights are respected.

For practical purposes – and to reflect Amnesty International’s Youth Strategy – this publication is divided

into three chapters. The first chapter, “Engagement”, explores efforts to reach out to and connect with young

people in new ways. The second chapter, “Activism”, looks at how young people are mobilizing or being

mobilized around specific issues. The third, “Participation”, looks at how young people are being

incorporated into the life and day-to-day operation of organizations. Each chapter is focused around a series

of case-studies drawing upon Amnesty International’s experience, as well as the work of many other

organizations and initiatives.

With innovative new youth projects emerging daily, this publication is bound to be soon outdated.

Nevertheless, we would love to receive your feedback, additional case studies and anecdotes (especially

from the South) so that we might incorporate them into future publications. Write to us at

[email protected].

Denise Searle

Senior Director for Communications

[photo caption]

Global Nomads Group:

see page 34

[end of photo caption]

1. Engagement Young people are hot property right now. Many social causes and NGOs, see engaging with youth as a

strategic opportunity to convert a generation of (even soft) supporters “for life” – at a stage when they are

likely to be finding their place in society and forming their opinions.

However, engaging with youth is something most established NGOs and mainstream institutions have done

poorly. Youth today have many competing demands for their money, attention, and especially time – from

their studies, friends and jobs, and from professional commercial marketers. Many groups such as politicians

complain that youth simply do not care about their message – without realizing that the ways in which they

communicate barely penetrate into the public and media spaces young people inhabit. Engaging youth

requires radical changes in thinking and approach for traditional organizations.

Young people consume very little of the mainstream media – such as broadsheet newspapers. Instead, in an

increasingly digital world, youth participate within a highly fragmented alternate media space that involves

niche magazines, the Internet, and content designed for delivery via mobile devices. Reaching into this space

means adopting a diverse range of strategies, including capitalizing on the world’s oldest and most

successful form of communication – word of mouth.

[pullquote]

MANY GROUPS COMPLAIN YOUTH ‘SIMPLY DON’T’CARE ABOUT OUR MESSAGE’ –

WITHOUT REALIZING THAT THE WAYS THEY ARE TRYING TO COMMUNICATE BARELY

PENETRATE INTO THE PUBLIC AND MEDIA SPACES YOUNG PEOPLE INHABIT

[end of pullquote]

Many of today’s youth barely have time to eat between school, work, family and other commitments. They

do not want to compromise their limited free time. However, they appreciate it when concerts, sporting

events – even travel – involves a component of social change. Some of the more effective engagement

initiatives are those that provide young people with educational credit for community service or that occur in

a workplace environment.

Youth engagement is not easy. And there are hundreds, if not thousands, of organizations vying for the

attention of a finite audience. This chapter aims to showcase organizations that constantly innovate in their

strategies, creating meaningful experiences for real impact.

Growing internal expertise on youth issues

Young people love to be asked what they think! Listening to and understanding the concerns, views, and

needs of young people is critical to ensure engagement initiatives adopt the right messages and are delivered

through appropriate media. At the same time, a lot can be gained from effective surveying of what already

exists in the youth space and by learning from the experience of others. This can avoid huge duplication of

effort and reinvention of the wheel.

[box]

AIUSA

development of a National Youth Strategy

About four years ago, AIUSA (members, staff and the board) recognized that their one-size-fits all approach

to membership was not meeting the needs or realizing the potential of young members (who comprise up to

80 per cent of AIUSA activists). This realization prompted the development of a new National Youth

Strategy. Bearing in mind the need to consult the target audience itself, in October 2003 a planning meeting

was held attended by AI’s existing National Campus Advisory Committee, other AI student leaders, key

staff from the Membership Mobilization Department and other departments, such as Communications,

Development, Advocacy and Human Resources), and a young member of the Board of Directors. This

meeting produced a draft document outlining goals for the next five years. A smaller group of attendees

elaborated on the goals, which provided the Youth Strategy. A key change outlined in the document was the

centralized distribution of materials to local youth groups, freeing up regional staff to provide more

extensive training and organize assistance to groups. The National Youth Strategy was then used as the basis

of the student and youth component within AIUSA’s integrated Activist Blueprint for overall membership

and activist mobilization, which was sent for consultation to all members, discussed at regional conferences,

and finally approved by the Board of Directors.

[end of box]

Youth Movements Global Guide

Youth Movements Global Guide provides a snapshot of the global youth movement in 2002. Jointly

commissioned by two youth organizations, TakingITGlobal and the Global Youth Action Network, the

research documents and classifies major efforts to engage young people. This simple web-based resource

gives brief introductions to “the Big 7” youth organizations (including the Scouts and the YMCA),

youth camps, religious youth organizations, websites, political youth wings, and youth-oriented campaigns.

www.youthmovements.org/guide/globalguide.htm

[box]

Good practices

One of the most comprehensive efforts to map the global youth movement.

Publicly available.

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Never assume you have any clue what youth find either interesting or compelling. Ask them.’

Terri Willard, International Institute for Sustainable Development

[end of quote]

World Bank youth and children strategy

In 2005 the World Bank published a Children and Youth Framework. This follows three years of work

by the Bank, at a variety of levels, to grow knowledge, data, and projects on young people’s challenges, as

well as increase dialogue with youth and their organizations. In early 2003, the Bank established a Children

and Youth Unit at its headquarters, comprising a small number of Bank staff, as well as staff seconded –

unusually – from major NGOs (such as Plan International), development agencies (including Danida and

GTZ), and established youth organizations (such as the Scouts). The Bank combined an extensive

consultation process (including a large structured e-consultation with 1,000 participants, many of them youth)

with several pilot outreach and research projects. These included three annual “Youth for Development and

Peace” conferences, a new youth-oriented website, “YouTHINK”, and a replicable local programme entitled

“New Voices” through which the Bank has distributed US$600,000 to 30 of its national Resident Missions

to develop consultation and poverty reduction projects with local youth. Perhaps the most substantial result

of the strategy development process will be the 2007 edition of the Bank’s flagship publication, the World

Development Report, which will be focused on youth and titled Development and the Next Generation. The

nature of this publication means the profile of youth work has been significantly enhanced across the

organization, including among the Bank’s more traditional staff, such as economists and researchers.

www.Youthink.worldbank.org

World Development Report 2007 – http://tinyurl.com/bs8zl

[box]

Good practices

Extensive, open, e-consultation process.

Practitioners and young people engaged online and through local meetings.

[end of box]

[box]

Consulting with children and young people

Toolkit for consulting with children (Save the Children)

www.savethechildren.net/alliance/resources/childconsult_toolkit_final.pdf

Consultation toolkit (Create Scotland)

www.create-scotland.co.uk/docs/reaction_toolkit.pdf

[end of box]

Connecting with a youth audience

Connecting with a youth audience means venturing into young people’s space, rather than waiting for them

to come to you. It means appealing to youth interests. And it means having young people themselves as

advocates for your organization – young people are best placed to gain the trust and enthusiasm of their

peers. Connecting with youth is less about imparting information and much more about fostering dialogue:

many of the best engagement initiatives provide a platform for young people to express themselves.

[box]

AI Canada (English-Speaking)

Connecting with aboriginal youth

Solomon joined AI Canada as part of the Youth Internship Programme in 2003, with no experience of the

organization but with a passion for human rights. He was deeply involved in the local aboriginal community,

coming from a family of aboriginal activists. AI Canada teamed Solomon with its new Indigenous

Campaigner, Craig Benjamin, just as it was establishing its work with Indigenous Rights. Solomon brought

vital insight, experience and community connections to AI’s work. Today, Solomon is part of AI Canada’s

Fieldworker programme, through which he is working to bridge the divide between the Aboriginal

community and human rights organizations. He established an AI traditional drumming circle – using a

specially commissioned “AI drum” called the Midnight Messenger. He now attends AI local and student

groups, performing and talking about indigenous Canadian human rights and their relation to human rights

abuses abroad. His work has reached at least 1,000 young people across communities with large indigenous

populations. Most recently, he was elected to AI Canada’s Board of Directors.

[photo caption]

AI Canada’s traditional drumming circle

© Amnesty International Canada


[end of box]

Never Again

Never Again is a Polish organization that uses youth-related culture, such as music and sport, to combat

growing racism and neo-fascism. Its first key project was Music Against Racism, a series of more than 100

concerts including several major music festivals (one attracted more than 300,000 young people). As well as

engaging local and European pop stars to promote anti-racist messages, Never Again set up information

desks at the festivals. Its second major project, Let’s Kick Racism out of the Stadium, focused on racism in

football. This campaign has struck a chord with the mainstream audience, troubled that football culture is

dominated by xenophobia. It also capitalized on the high-profile support of local football stars. But pop-

culture engagement is only one aspect of Never Again’s work. Through its public activities, it has recruited a

nationwide network of young volunteers who submit monthly reports on the activities of extreme-right

groups in their community, based on personal experience and local media coverage. This material is

analysed and published on a website and in a quarterly magazine distributed to thousands of readers and

mainstream journalists, and has led to national and international attention on Poland’s human rights record.

www.nigdywiecej.org

[box]

Good practices

Tackles human rights abuses within youth-oriented spaces such as sports events and music festivals.

[end of box]

Rock the Vote

Rock the Vote, a US initiative launched in 1990, pioneered the use of celebrities to encourage young people

to register to vote – with tours and concerts broadcast in partnership with MTV. Rock the Vote has changed

over time to keep up with trends. In the two most recent elections, the effort has focused as much around

online communities and content such as email lists, a blog page, online music downloads and merchandising,

meet-ups and mobile phone content as live music television. More recently, Rap the Vote was launched to

mobilize hip-hop music fans. While maintaining its simple “please vote” message, Rock the Vote has built

on its success to promote a variety of other causes – such as being against the draft, and supporting the

preservation of Social Security entitlements.

www.rockthevote.org

[box]

Good practices

As youth watch less TV, Rock the Vote has moved into other interactive mediums.

Acknowledges youth diversity, delivering its message in different ways to different audiences.

[end of box]

Music for America

Music for America was one of many new initiatives launched in time for the 2004 US presidential election

that clearly owed a debt to Rock the Vote, yet were edgier, overtly partisan (mostly on the progressive side),

and more participative. Music for America encourages students and youth to organize their own concerts or

other cultural events across the country (in their school, street, or even a party in their house), apply to create

their own public blog featured on the website, or tell their friends about a viral email petition. They call it

“peer-to-peer” politics.

www.musicforamerica.org

[box]

Good practices

Taps into youth’s willingness to get involved in event organizing and promotion.

Website is based around cheap, compelling, user-created content.

[end of box]

46664

46664, Nelson Mandela’s prison number, was used in 2003 post-apartheid South Africa as the name of a

concert and campaign to raise awareness and funds for the former President’s foundation to help those

infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. The concert itself followed fairly closely the framework established by

July 1985’s LiveAid event – big name acts from diverse musical periods performing together, interspersed

with appeals to donate. The catchy branding (reinforced with a song and the iconic presence of Mandela),

high production values, and the innovative ability to donate online or simply by texting the number 46664,

ensured the initiative had strong global outreach. The concert’s fundraising effort was also well-timed to

take advantage of growth in personal DVD sales.

www.46664.com

[box]

key points

Built around the iconic figure of Nelson Mandela and other celebrities.

Effective branding linked to SMS donation number.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Nelson Mandela at the 46664 concert

© 46664 Concerts/Nelson Mandela Foundation


[box]

AIUSA

Music for Human Rights

Music for Human Rights was a recruitment and fundraising tool developed by AIUSA. Many well known

music artists already supporting AI contributed songs to a free CD to encourage new member sign-ups. In

addition, a colourful, well-designed website was established which linked directly from the AIUSA website.

The site includes profiles on artists, describing the work they have done to promote human rights and AI.

Links are included to purchase tracks by the artist from Amazon.com, with whom AIUSA formed a

partnership to receive a commission from sales. In 2002 and 2003, AI asked a number of artists to illustrate

and autograph their own skateboard decks which were auctioned through eBay – pictures of the decks also

feature on the Music for Human Rights page.

[end of box]

The Noise Festival

The Noise Festival is a biannual youth art initiative funded by the Australia Council for the Arts. Rather than

gallery walls, Noise’s exhibition space is the popular media, through partnerships with more than 80 radio

and television networks, film distributors, book publishers, magazines, and websites. Noise showcases

untraditional art, such as animation, spoken word, e-zines, and new and remixed music,

as well as creative writing, photography and digital images. Noise provides some of the artists with small

grants in advance, but most art is submitted via competition. Noise successfully connects with new

audiences for the arts by tapping into the popular media space consumed by young people and by breaking

down barriers between audience and artists.

www.noise.net.au

[box]

key points

Extends the “Internet” concept that “anyone can make the media” to mainstream publications.

Provides a showcase for new forms of electronic art.

[end of box]

[box]

AI Make Some Noise

Make Some Noise is a global Amnesty International venture that engages young people through the

enduring power of “music with a message”. The project is grounded in the gift by Yoko Ono to Amnesty

International of the recording rights to the John Lennon solo songbook. Contemporary artists such as Snow

Patrol, The Black Eyed Peas, Avril Lavigne and The Postal Service have recorded versions of such iconic

tracks as “Power to the People” and “Imagine”, which have been made available for download in digital

format (with a planned physical album to follow). The Make Some Noise website also provides a platform

to learn about human rights issues, take web-based action – such as joining the Control Arms Million Faces

Petition – and register to keep in touch with Amnesty International through regular e-communications

personalized to the user's country and music interests. While Make Some Noise builds on Amnesty

International’s long history of music projects, such as the 1988 “Human Rights Now!” tour, it also tests

many new ways of engaging with youth audiences through global projects, using new forms of technology,

including mobile technology, cutting-edge graphics (produced by 180 Amsterdam, a creative agency known

for its work on youth and sports brands), and outreach to youth and music media.

www.amnesty.org/noise

[end of box]

Cirque du Monde

Cirque du Monde is the flagship project of the social action arm of Cirque du Soleil, one of the world’s

most popular circus troupes. Cirque du Monde supports circus arts programmes for “youth at risk”

(especially street children) in 34 communities around the world, in partnership with local organizations.

These programmes range from Brazil’s “Grupo AfroReggae” to the “Sinani African Dream Circus” in Cape

Town, South Africa. Cirque du Monde also has global alliances, including with Oxfam Québec, Canada,

which provides volunteers and shares its expertise in development in return for Cirque du Soleil organizing

various special fundraising events in support of Oxfam’s youth work. For the Oxfam International Youth

Parliament in 2004, Cirque du Soleil brought together 30 young people from seven of their partner

organizations for a three week workshop and a special collaborative performance at the National Institute for

Dramatic Arts in Sydney, Australia. One per cent of Cirque du Soleil revenue – approximately US$4 million

annually – is devoted to its social action programmes.

www.cirquedusoleil.com/CirqueDuSoleil/en/company/socialaction/

[box]

Good practices

High-quality product.

Community provides a safe and exciting alternative to daily life.

Broad range of partnerships.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Young people participate in a project supported by Cirque du Monde

© Cirque du Soleil


Make Poverty History

Make Poverty History (MPH), is a groundbreaking collaborative campaign building upon the combined

resources and expertise of most development charities in the UK. Launched in 2005, MPH’s mission was

to hold world leaders to their past promises to significantly increase aid, create just rules of global trade, and

write off the debt of poor countries in 2005. The campaign was built around three major meetings of world

leaders in 2005 – the G8 Summit in Edinburgh, UK, in July, the September UN Millennium Review Summit

in New York, and the December World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Meeting in Hong Kong. The

Campaign successfully inserted itself into public consciousness through innovative use of mainstream media.

An episode of a popular British sitcom, “The Vicar of Dibley”, revolved around the characters joining the

MPH campaign for example, the participation of a broad range of celebrities, and especially its signature

white wristband, which was worn by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and a million others from school

children to office workers. The campaign also provided a broad array of action opportunities requiring

varying degrees of commitment. Those keen to participate could attend an all-night vigil in London,

converge around the G8 summit, attend the Live8 concerts, do school activities or simply wear the white

wristband. MPH was part of the Global Call to Action Against Poverty, and other countries adopted the

Make Poverty History slogan for their own campaigns. The campaign gained additional urgency and validity

in the public consciousness following the high level of giving that followed the Asian tsunami.

www.makepovertyhistory.org

www.whiteband.org

[box]

key points

NGOs have been able to pool their resources (global outreach, media contacts, celebrity

endorsement etc) and gain major visibility.

Has almost become a fashion label, with a huge number of wristbands sold.

[end of box]

I-to-I

I-to-I is an innovative travel company that has tapped into the desire of adventurous young people

to travel to other countries and learn about other cultures, while giving something back to the communities

they visit. Something between a tour operator and a volunteer sending agency, I-to-I, in partnership with

travel agency STA Travel, places young people with organizations in fields such as teaching, conservation,

community development, media, sports, building, marketing, tourism, and health. In a separate effort,

Oxfam has partnered with I-to-I and STA Travel, to launch the STA Travel Trust, which provides grants for

young people interested in travelling to pursue their own social change projects.

www.i-to-i.com/

www.statravel.co.uk/c_yearout/traveltrust.asp

[box]

Good practices

Simple extension of the “package holiday” concept to the voluntary sector.

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

Declare Yourself:

a young voter engagement initiative from the USA

www.declareyourself.com

[end of box]

[box]

8 reasons why youth engagement efforts can fail

Not enough accommodation by adults – it would help to hold meetings being held during school

hours, for ex.

Adults use language such as “text messaging format” which is supposedly “hip” but is just

embarrassing!

Tendency to begin with the “most difficult” groups to reach or the most unlikely to join … when it

fact it is a much more likely – and safer – bet to start with those youth that have a predisposition to

the cause, just as you would with any other age segment.

Assumption that youth engagement is about speaking to youth, when in fact many of the best

initiatives create spaces for dialogue and expression by young people.

Failure to include young people during the initial phase – when in fact, saying you’ll listen to young

people is one of the best ways of getting their attention!

Tendency to assume that all young people (at least from a similar geographic area) think alike or are

motivated by the same things.

Failure to recognize that one of the key ways in which young people seek to stand out is by their

choice in music: running a music project without paying close attention to the style of artists

engaged may not have the expected results.

Little emphasis on what comes next – now you have their attention, what do you want them to do?

[end of box]

What young members of AI say are the best ways to engage with young people

(in rank order from ‘most attractive’)

1. Long-term Human Rights Education

2. Music festivals or gigs

3. Outreach programmes in schools and universities

4. Television

5. Celebrity endorsement

7. Cinema adverts

8. International youth meetings

9. Public demonstrations

10. Youth newsletters/magazines/media

11. Friends and relatives

12. The web

13. Community festivals

14. Meetings and forums

15. Street canvassing/face-to-face

16. Radio

17. Sport

18. Theatre

19. Religious groups

20. Newspapers

21. Workplace

22. Social forums (eg World Social Forum)

Creating engaging materials

Today’s youth are intensely brand aware, constantly bombarded with inspiring or entreating messages from

a wealth of corporations and organisations. This has prompted an anti-brand movement, recognised

particularly in the North where many young consumers have grown immune to traditional marketing.

Companies are now turning to the young people’s own communication tools – of web, films and mobile

technology – to grab their attention. NGOs and social causes are, therefore, expected to use the same media,

and need to do so with twice as much savvy to be noticed.

[box]

AIUK re-branding

With the intention of achieving significant growth and reaching fresh audiences, AIUK embarked on a major

re-branding process in 2003 in partnership with a UK advertising agency. One key driver for change was

concern that the organization was not reaching people under 40 (with the exception of those in the formal

education system). Through internal and external qualitative research and testing, key brand issues identified

included a lack of visibility outside the broadsheet media, a lack of simplicity, and a focus within

communications on “minds” (arguments, politics, international legal standards) over “hearts” (real stories,

real acts of courage, real people standing up for other people). The new branding, launching progressively

throughout 2005, re-focused AIUK’s image. A new slogan – “Protect the Human” – emphasizes AI’s

ultimate vision (protecting humanity) over its methods such as international legal standard setting. The key

idea is to highlight the human in human rights. Bright florescent colours were introduced to all materials to

distance AIUK from its former intellectual, slightly forbidding image. The re-branding has extended to the

section’s office building with large pictures of real people and their stories greeting visitors at reception. The

materials are also being provided to all local and students groups so they can project a consistent identity,

and were launched in October 2005 through a “Protect the Human” week of public events, speeches, public

stunts, media placement, and viral marketing designed to build public understanding of AI’s work.

[photo caption]

AIUK’s new branding

© Amnesty International UK


[end of box]

Adbusters

Adbusters describes itself as “a global network of artists, activists, writers, pranksters, students, educators

and entrepreneurs who want to advance the new social activist movement of the information age”. The key

tactic of Adbusters is “culturejamming” – using the same advertising and marketing techniques that big

companies use to promote their products (and, indeed, often reworked or “jammed” advertisements) to

highlight issues such as media concentration, over-consumption and corporate power. Adbusters’ main

projects are its flagship 100,000 circulation printed magazine, a 75,000 member email list, city-specific

activist networks called “Jammer Groups” (their own term for “meet-ups”), and the Adbusters Media

Foundation which buys time for television advertisements which have been produced by members of the

public.

www.adbusters.org

[box]

Good practices

Uses and subverts mainstream culture and advertising.

Remains close to its community; sense that everyone can contribute.

[end of box]

Chat the Planet

Chat the Planet is a television series created by New York-based NextNext Entertainment and shown on a

variety of channels around the world. Chat the Planet connects young people from countries including South

Africa, the USA, Jordan, Iraq, and Australia via satellite, in conversations exploring youth perspectives on

major issues such as racism, activism, and immigration. Perhaps the most compelling episodes were three

specials on the war in Iraq, connecting youth in New York and Baghdad. While experimental in nature, and

quite costly to produce, Chat the Planet demonstrates that live connections between young people around

serious issues can make compelling mainstream television. The programme benefited from tight editing and

contemporary music and was complemented by a popular website allowing participants to continue the

conversation with discussion boards and meet-ups.

www.chattheplanet.org Generation Why

[box]

key points

Rare outlet on television where young people are seen as having intelligent and valuable opinions.

Edited in a dynamic, fast-paced fashion with MTV-style hosts, contemporary music, and fast-cuts.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Youth in New York and Baghdad, Iraq, connect via satellite

© NextNext Entertainment


Generation Why

Generation Why is an umbrella “youth brand” of Oxfam GB. As Oxfam is seen to have a conservative

image in the UK, it was felt the charity needed a separate, more youthful identity in order to target young

people. The Generation Why website, which re-purposes much of the content from the main Oxfam site, has

a colourful design (borrowing from Japanese anime), and simple navigation structure. The site includes a

strong “issues” area, with clear and interesting information about the major issues Oxfam campaigns around,

plus opportunities to take electronic action. At the bottom of each page, a “jargon buster” provides

definitions of complex words used. An events calendar includes entries on a range of music festivals,

political events, international days, and training programmes which Oxfam is participating in or organizing.

A “do something” page outlines ways young people can support Oxfam by organizing fundraising events,

volunteering in Oxfam shops, and donating cash and old mobile phones, while an online shop offers

merchandise and fair-trade goods.

www.oxfam.org.uk/generationwhy

[box]

Good practices

Links Oxfam and making a difference with other things young people may perceive as fun – such as

music festivals.

Written in youthful language.

[end of box]

YouthNoise

YouthNoise is a popular US-focused website designed to encourage youth to get involved in their

community, think critically, and learn about important issues. It uses the techniques of youth-oriented

commercial new media (such as Bolt.com) and magazines (such as Seventeen or TeenPeople). Initially

developed by Save the Children USA, with a relatively large budget at the time of the “dot-com bubble”,

YouthNoise was expected to quickly become a self-sustaining autonomous unit, but took three years to be

made fully independent. YouthNoise gained significant momentum after 9/11 when President Bush

encouraged young people to visit the site to find volunteer opportunities and fundraise for the victims’

families. The YouthNoise website is dominated by bright primary colours and simple animation and is

populated with stories on the charity work of celebrities. It also uses snappy slogans (The Sound of Change

for Our Generation was recently changed to Your World. Your Noise). YouthNoise has adopted a weekly

featured issue, with content including quick fact-sheets, well moderated discussion boards, a quiz, surveys,

and email letter-writing to members of Congress.

www.youthnoise.com

[box]

Good practices

Traffic driven by partnerships with teen magazines and other web properties.

Issues featured on the site drawn from subjects members are discussing in well-moderated boards.

Simple weekly “call to action”.

[end of box]

[box]

Create change

AI International Secretariat web design partnership with young artists’ collective The International

Secretariat (IS) web team contacted the UHC Collective, a group of young artists and graphic designers

based in Manchester, UK, which had previously made national headlines by creating a fully operational life-

size replica of Camp X-Ray in Guantánamo Bay in Manchester. The IS web team asked UHC to design a set

of e-postcards to be used on the amnesty.org site; the idea was to trial this collaboration on a very specific,

contained project, in the hope that it might lead to future collaborations. Preliminary discussion of the

assignment led to an interesting approach: the two parties convened a workshop with young artists, both

within and external to the collective. Additionally, the artists were asked to develop their works as individual

responses to AI’s work rather than as official communications of its message. This approach adds an

additional point of interest to the finished products: they are worthy of attention not just for what they are,

but also for the process by which they were produced, and as such have the potential of being used as part of

both online and offline displays and exhibitions.

www.amnesty.org/createchange

[end of box]

[box]

7 reasons why many big NGO brands don’t appeal to youth

Use of acronyms that all sound the same and mean nothing to outsiders.

Association with celebrities that appeal to the converted, rather than broader audiences. It takes time

to cultivate celebrity support, while trends in youth music and culture move quickly.

Lack of differentiation between charity brands in a crowded space – many still use similar “charity

colours” such as blues and greens.

Little exposure of the organization and its brand outside of high-brow news media which is little

read by younger audiences.

Failure to communicate simply the organization’s mission, with a tendency to focus on complicated

or less attractive methods rather than vision for change.

Public presence (outside news media) dominated by “old fashioned” premises such as second-hand

goods shops, rather than cool brands or products.

Seen as big and institutional – disconnected from the grassroots, where the real action often happens.

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

Stand

One of many outstanding youth anti-smoking initiatives

www.standonline.org

Youthink

Informative youth site created by the World Bank’s marketing department

youthink.worldbank.org

Vibewire.net

Australian youth media network with an impressive network of volunteer contributors

www.vibewire.net

Animafac

French student organization that, among (many) other things, develops powerful campaigns on health issues

www.animafac.net

Shine

Impressive youth violence prevention initiative with powerful site and suite of mainstream media partners

www.shine.com

Global Action Project

New York-based group that supports youth worldwide creating powerful TV documentaries on human rights

issues

www.global-action.org/

Youth Red Cross Content Committee

Volunteer group of young people in the USA who develop youth-oriented content for the Red Cross website

www.redcross.org/news/yo/other/

030731youthbios.html

[end of box]

AI section websites

AI has a variety of youth-oriented websites and sub-pages of mainstream sites around the world.

AI Denmark’s standard-setting youth page [www.amnesty-youth.dk] has a dramatic black and red design, a

comprehensive listing of local youth and student groups, an events calendar, an “Info Bank” with articles on

the key issues AI is concerned with, e-postcards, information about AI Denmark’s youth programmes and

recent achievements, and contact information. The least successful element of the site appears to be the

discussion board, which has only received a few postings.

AI Canada (English-speaking) engaged an intern to redesign the Youth component of its mainstream website

[www.amnesty.ca/youth]. The site includes a raft of materials which were previously only available in

printed format – such as a youth group registration form, an events calendar, and a comprehensive toolkit to

help young people take action.

AIUSA’s youth website [www.amnestyusa.org/youth] is integrated within the design of the section’s

mainstream site, and prominently linked from the main navigation. It is packed full of information of interest

to existing AI student members, such as opportunities to participate in the Annual General Meeting and the

Youth Activist Kollege, a comprehensive database of youth and student groups with links to their own

websites, and a guide to starting your own youth group. A significant feature on the “National Week of

Student Action” includes a news blog, a guide to organizing events, an extensive interactive calendar of

events, activism tips and ideas, and fact sheets. Of more interest to non-members is the “online action

centre” where people can send emails to politicians, and the sub-site, Music for Human Rights (see page 15).

AI Netherlands, Ireland and Belgium (Francophone) has launched “Youth Watch”

[www.youthwatch.amnesty.org/], an online community for young people. The current site was created

following a successful pilot project in which Dutch schools communicated with students in Sierra Leone by

sending letters, postcards, and drawings. The goal of the broader programme is to facilitate intercultural

dialogue and establish long-lasting contact around human rights issues. The site features include the ability

to upload letters and articles, forge twinning relationships with other schools, as well as information on some

AI campaigns and an educator’s guide.

Other sections with youth-specific web content

AI Switzerland – www.amnesty.ch/Youth/

AI Belgium French-speaking – www.amnestyinternational.be/index.php3

AI Belgium Flemish Speaking – www.aivl.be/index.cfm?PageID=9

AI France – www.amnesty.asso.fr/05_amnesty/55_france/554/554_coord_jeunes2.htm

AIUK – www.amnesty.org.uk/education/youthandstudent

[box]

9 reasons why youth websites can fail to meet expectations

The Youth Coordinator is given the task of building the youth website despite the fact they have no

knowledge of graphic design or website development.

Content is not produced in a style with youth in mind, or is too simplified and speaks down to young

people.

Lack of recognition that websites require ongoing maintenance including fresh content to encourage

users to visit the site regularly, as well as ongoing moderation of discussion for user engagement and

the protection of minors.

Failing to generate easy content – such as re-publishing other content already distributed by the

organization in other formats, allowing user-created content to be featured, or holding content

competitions.

Failing to promote the website – having a “build it and they will come” mentality.

Unnecessarily re-purposing and/or duplicating content that is already available on the main

organizational website – young people will react against anything that patronizes them, and does not

offer anything of additional value.

Not being the best website in the category – duplicating effort doesn’t add value.

Lack of internal technical capacity to maintain the site as technology develops and changes or it

becomes more popular and outgrows its web-hosting arrangements.

Lack of appropriate language support for the intended audiences. The web is global and should be

available in core global languages.

[end of box]

[box]

Toolkits for youth creating media

Media Toolkit for Youth (Media Awareness Network)

www.media-awareness.ca/english/special_initiatives/toolkit/index.cfm

The Groovy Little Youth Media Sourcebook

www.listenup.org/resources

[end of box]

Human Rights Education

Educating young people can create long-term attitudinal change in societies. When done within existing

teaching systems it also exploits a captive audience. Done right, it gives young people an early

understanding of the complex forces at work in society. Teachers are often happy to lend support in

exchange for good curriculum ideas and materials, and many NGOs have established significant and

successful human rights education (HRE) programmes. Some even offer their own accredited qualifications.

But HRE is not all plain sailing – it still meets resistance from those who perceive it as political, and it

must also face the challenges of adapting to different local currcicula.

[box]

AIUK video, ‘Small window’

In the early 1990s, AIUK produced the video Small Window, designed to give students aged 14-18 an

introduction to AI and its work. The video features issues such as the plight of street children in Brazil,

Chinese repression of Tibetan monasteries, and stories about refugees. It successfully combines a mix of

footage, interviews with former prisoners of conscience, and profiles of young AI activists in the UK. 15

years after its original release, the video still at demonstrates the value and importance of AI’s work. AIUK

is looking at developing similar new media products taking account of current events.

[end of box]

Canada World Youth

Canada World Youth (CWY) was established in 1971 with support from the Canadian government. CWY’s

mission is to operate international exchange programmes to encourage learning through experience. But

where other programmes such as Rotary or AFS focus on cultural exchange, Canada World Youth includes a

practical voluntary-service component where young participants are involved in local development projects

and study the connections between local issues and global challenges. Active in around 25 countries with

400 placements a year, Canada World Youth’s present focus is on Africa, HIV/AIDS, rural development,

and the use of Information Technology for development and human rights. As an example of one of its

various collaborative exchange projects, CWY has formed a partnership with Toronto-based Journalists for

Human Rights, engaging 36 dynamic young journalists from Benin, Canada and Senegal in a

six-month cultural exchange and training programme. The young journalists work together to report on

human rights issues on two different continents.

www.cwy-jcm.org/

www.jhr.ca

[box]

Good practices

Provides highly practical hands-on experiential learning.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Participants in a Journalists for Human Rights West Africa journalism project

© Journalists for Human Rights


iEARN

iEARN (or the International Education and Resource Network) is the world’s largest non-profit network

facilitating the use of the Internet to create global connections and enable collaborative projects between

classrooms. Projects (mostly email-based) focus on issues such as child labour, child soldiers, corruption,

respect, and refugees. A highly decentralized network, the development and management of new

collaborative projects is largely led by participating teachers, who have voluntarily organized into support

and professional development networks at the national level. iEARN’s annual conference, the premier global

event in online human rights and development education, is hosted by a different country each year. iEARN

grew out of telephone dialogues between classrooms in the Soviet Union and the USA in the late 1980s. It

receives support primarily from philanthropic foundations, such as the Open Society Institute, for its core

technology systems and outreach.

www.iearn.org

[box]

key points

Decentralization has allowed the network to create a large number of educational activities.

Decentralization has also enabled incorporation of new technologies in line with the differing

capabilities of local groups.

[end of box]

Global Nomads Group

Global Nomads Group (GNG) is a New York-based, non-profit organization that promotes international

cooperation and understanding through video conferencing hook-ups between classrooms (and occasionally

other groups of young people) in the USA and elsewhere. The broadcasts are available on the Internet for

viewing by other schools. Immediately following 9/11, GNG hosted three forums linking youth from six US

cities with youth in Australia, India, Jordan, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Switzerland, to discuss

the impact of the attacks and experiences of terrorism in other nations. Other empowering video conferences

have connected indigenous youth with the Indigenous Summit of the Americas, explored the Palestinian-

Israeli conflict, connected youth in Baghdad, Iraq, and New York before and after the war on Iraq (resulting

in a 30-minute special on the PBS network), created dialogue with youth in Rwanda on the 10th anniversary

of the genocide, and broadcast from a Sudanese refugee camp in eastern Chad’s remote border region. The

GNG website includes curriculum support materials. GNG is supported by the world’s largest video

conferencing company Polycom, and the Family Foundation of Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon.com.

www.gng.org

[box]

Good practices

Provides programming related to current issues in the news.

Video conferences enable virtual experience of other cultures, global issues, and crises without

travel.

Provides personal link between students and the “material” they are studying.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Conferencing from Chad

© Global Nomads Group


NewzCrew

NewzCrew is a project of Global Kids, another New York-based organization well known for its hands-on

projects with young people from poorer parts of the city – engaging them in leadership projects with an

international flavour. NewzCrew is a dynamic website developed in partnership with the nightly PBS’s

newscast, The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. It features lesson plans about current national and global issues,

contributed by teachers – as well as focused, facilitated online discussions, known as “learning circles”, for

students. Moderation of the discussion is provided by Global Kids volunteer youth who are provided with

extensive training. The website is a follow-up to a similar online discussion curriculum resource called

“EA9/11” or “Everything After 9/11” .

www.newzcrew.org

[box]

Good practices

Young people involved in the development of the website.

Responsive to current issues in the media.

[end of box]

Global Child Rights & Peer Education

Global Child Rights & Peer Education is a nationally accredited programme created by Save the Children

UK, for young people to acquire the skills to teach other young people about their rights and key global

issues. The qualification has been running since 2003 and more than 30 young people have completed the

programme. Working with grassroots agencies (both statutory and voluntary) to enable a diverse group of

young people to get involved has ensured that the trained peer educators reflect the communities they wish

to work in. The qualification is gained through a series of intensive, hands-on residential training sessions

where participants develop key skills and knowledge. Modules in the programme include Campaigning,

Poverty, Asylum-Seekers and Refugee Issues, and Presentation Skills.

www.savethechildren.org.uk

[box]

Good practices

Provides young people with a formal qualification.

[end of box]

[box]

Global Human Rights Education Network:

International network of human rights education practitioners sharing resources and promoting HRE

www.hrea.org

NoWarZone

Website connecting youth in schools in Canada and conflict zones – project by War Child Canada

www.nowarzone.com

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Experiential learning resonates deeply – and if that learning strikes an emotional chord, its lesson is bound

to stick’

Abby Falik, Programme Manager, Global Citizen Corps, NetAid

[end of quote]

[box]

AI Netherlands annual creative youth competition

Each year, AI Netherlands organizes a competition for students to develop creative materials that show

solidarity with a human rights group working in another part of the world. For example, one year, students

were asked to design a t-shirt that AI’s Peru section could wear in a national marathon for human rights. In

2004 students were asked to design a comic strip highlighting the issue of Violence Against Women that

could be distributed to young people in Colombia. Marcela Feras, a Colombian human rights activist, was

invited to the Netherlands and travelled around participating schools. The programme is promoted to all

Dutch schools in partnership with Dutch broadcaster NCRV, with an information pack that includes posters

and lessons on the competition’s theme. AI Netherlands is excited about the success of the programme

which takes action beyond letter-writing and petitions, but reports that developing new creative ideas and

partnerships each year is challenging.

[end of box]

[box]

5 challenges faced by Human Rights Education initiatives

Lack of understanding of what Human Rights Education (HRE) is, including how it is similar to or

different from to other social studies such as Development Education, Civics or Peace Education.

Considered too political by some administrators, especially in very conservative schools or in

countries where there is limited freedom of expression.

Not enough time for teachers to prepare the type of dynamic lessons required for HRE, or to attend

professional development on innovative approaches to teaching it.

Not enough time in the school day to fit in HRE along with the core curriculum, especially where

HRE has to compete with other extra-curricula work.

The significant cost of developing lesson materials that meet local needs and national curriculum

frameworks.

[end of box]

[box]

Toolkits on including youth in the design and delivery of Human Rights Education

Youth Voice: A guide for Engaging Youth in Leadership and Decision-making in service learning

programmes (Points of Light Foundation)

www.kidsforcommunity.org/pdf/tools/youthguide.pdf

Human rights education (AIUSA)

www.amnestyusa.org/education/index.html

[end of box]

Collaboration, coalitions, and communications

Many of the best and most innovative youth programmes – those which elicit the greatest commitment – are

led by young people themselves. Large organizations developing their own youth programmes find it

effective to focus on connecting and re-sourcing existing local grassroots youth groups. And local youth

may find it easier to innovate at the micro-level, outside the confines of NGO bureaucracy. Large

organizations can then add huge value in terms of communications platforms, resources, knowledge sharing,

continuity, and connection to mainstream initiatives and stakeholders.

TakingITGlobal

TakingITGlobal is an international youth network, centred on TakingITGlobal.org, a highly popular website

for young people interested in global issues, with more than 400,000 monthly visitors. Developed by young

people themselves (the founders were all teenagers at launch), TakingITGlobal’s infrastructure has grown to

service its membership, create engaging online content, and manage partnerships and special projects – there

are now more than 25 staff at the Toronto headquarters, Canada, and 12 more based around the world. The

website includes information on key issues, discussion boards, blogs, an online magazine contributed to by

users, a global gallery of artwork, databases of opportunities, projects, events and actions, and individual

profiles for the 100,000+ members. More than 50 per cent of TakingITGlobal’s users are in the developing

world, with membership growth driven largely via word of mouth, promotion by youth groups and UN

partners, and targeted Google advertising.

www.takingitglobal.org

[box]

Good practices

Run by young people.

Caters to youth who are generalists. interested in a broad range of issues.

Based around an online community rather than bureaucratic processes.

[end of box]

World Social Forum Intercontinental Youth Camp

World Social Forum Intercontinental Youth Camp is a one-week event within the World Social Forum, the

premier civil society convergence originally launched as a Southern counterpoint to the Davos World

Economic Forum. The Youth Camp occurs each year on a grand scale – more than 25,000 youth participated

in 2003. The campsite is organized around seven “centres of action” which focus on different political issues

– Cultural Resistance, Health and Culture, Communication and Free Knowledge, Social and Student

Movements, Human Rights and Sexual Diversity, Environment, and Global Struggle and Direct Action. A

priority for the camp is facilitating collaboration between different organizations and countries – workshops

and volunteer facilitators are on hand to assist with the development of new partnerships. The camp also has

a shared “library” to which thousands of books have been contributed over the years.

www.acampamentofsm.org/

[box]

Good practices

Open participation.

Linked to a broader event.

Size and scope – something for everyone.

[end of box]

Oxfam International Youth Parliament

Oxfam International Youth Parliament (IYP) brings together 350 young people once every four years, and

provides a global support network to help the delegates implement their own social change and development

projects upon return home. While conceived and implemented by Oxfam Australia, it is officially an

international project of the Oxfam family. Event participants come from a diverse range of backgrounds –

from those running their own organization to activists with large organizations such as People and Planet or

AI, and local Oxfam affiliates. The emphasis of the event is not just on sharing opinions and writing

declarations, but on gaining skills, developing personal projects, and fostering collaboration. More than

A$150,000 has been made available in the form of mini-grants for delegates through a competitive process.

IYP has also developed its own campaigns (see “Highly Affected, Rarely Considered” on page 73), and

places particular emphasis on cultural activism (including a partnership with Cirque du Soleil, see page 17).

There are plans for the third sitting of the Parliament to take place in Australia in 2007.

www.iyp.oxfam.org

[box]

Good practices

Not just an event but an ongoing programme, with mini-grants to support action.

Strong facilitation and well structured agenda.

Diverse delegates including cultural performers.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

The International Youth Parliament Action Partners gather in Sydney, Australia

© Oxfam Australia


African Youth Alliance

African Youth Alliance (AYA). With the goal of reducing HIV/AIDS and raising awareness among youth of

sexual and reproductive health, the African Youth Alliance is one of the largest youth engagement initiatives

ever launched. With a grant of US$57 million over five years from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation,

AYA is an effective partnership led by the UN Population Fund (UNFPA), and two independent NGOs. It

has a comprehensive suite of goals: advocacy and awareness for critical community stakeholders (including

parliamentarians, judges and magistrates, journalists, teachers, service providers, religious leaders, cultural

leaders, school officials, sports leaders and parents) around the importance of adolescent sexual and

reproductive health; integration of sexual and reproductive health into the curriculum; and, especially, work

with and outreach to young people. Techniques used to reach youth include: life planning skills both in and

out of schools, music performance, drama, puppet shows, media talk shows, football matches, print media,

theatre, newsletters and cultural festivals. AYA is an intense effort designed to effect measurable change –

in its four target countries (Ghana, Tanzania, Botswana and Uganda), it has trained 70,000 community

leaders and 130,000 young peer educators. AYA’s methodology is primarily to provide funds and tools to

local community institutions and existing cultural outreach programmes.

www.ayaonline.org

[box]

Good practices

Scale of programme budget allows for a comprehensive approach engaging all community

stakeholders as well as youth.

Goes to youth, rather than expecting youth to come to the programme.

Mutually supportive partnerships both leverage and further build the capacity of local groups.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Young people act as peer educators on HIV/AIDS

© African Youth Alliance


[box]

7 reasons why youth-led coalitions can fail

An assumption that collaboration is simple, when in fact it is complex and requires clear governance,

clearly delineated responsibilities, open communications, and ongoing monitoring.

Over-reliance on individuals who contribute more than what should be expected of them, or indeed

is understood to be expected of them by the organization they represent.

An incorrect assumption that giving youth administrative and infrastructure support (which adult

organizations find essential) is somehow antiethical to the very nature of youth-led organizations.

A latest-fashion mentality at the UN and in international circles generally. A coalition might be

created, funded, and be very dynamic when a subject is “hot” (such as HIV/AIDS or Sustainable

Development) but as soon as the big event is over or another issue gains prominence (such as

security post-9/11), support drops away dramatically.

A mission “as long as a piece of string” – unclear and creeping objectives that mean individual

organizations’ responsibilities are poorly defined, and where the coalition’s work may begin to

duplicate or compete (for young people, resources or recognition) with the member organizations’

own projects.

Poor processes for international communication, where a coalition’s secretariat may be distributed

among member organizations across different continents and time zones. There is often a very

limited budget for conference calls or international team meetings that foster more effective

planning.

Ego of young organizers as well as adults in larger organizations.

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

International Forum of International Student Organizations

This is a new forum (with physical meetings and an email list) of international (predominantly European)

student organizations

www.ifiso.org

[end of box]

Other types of organizations that young AI members told us they participate in

(ranked from ‘most common’)

Human rights

Peace / Anti-war / Disarmament

Environment

Education

Politics

Community Development

Women’s rights

Racism

HIV/AIDS

Animal rights

Sexual identity rights

Social welfare

Political party

Poverty

Death penalty

Children’s rights

Civil rights

Student union

Ethnic minority issues

Globalization and global trading systems

Religious groups

Health

Sustainable Development

Clean water

Migration, trafficking, displacement and refugees

Indigenous people’s rights

Law/impunity

Alternative media initiatives

International solidarity

Employment

Trade union

[photo caption]

Leaders Today:

see page 53


2. Activism To many people, “youth activism” conjures up images of rowdy student protesters waving placards and

rallying against a wall of police. And although the street protest is by no means dead – witness the recent

huge mobilizations for peace – youth activism today encompasses a much broader range of tactics and styles.

Many young people are drawn to causes that offer fun, participatory, relatively easy and interesting ways to

be active. Most importantly, young activists are hooked when it is proved that their involvement is necessary.

This new brand of accessible, light activism has become almost mainstream, and consequently, the number

of young people wanting to make a difference has grown.

[pullquote]

MANY YOUTH WILL DO SOMETHING WHEN THE ACTION IS FUN, PARTICIPATORY,

RELATIVELY EASY, INTERESTING AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, WHEN IT SEEMS NECESSARY

[end of pullquote]

There has been a lot of buzz about the Internet as a dynamic campaigning tool. Mass email lists, web-based

discussion forums, social networking tools, and the use of mobile phone technology such as text messaging,

have generated new ways to gather people together and take joint action. The media in all its forms has

become such a dominating presence in the lives of young people that “culture jamming” – taking action or

making a statement through subversion of media and advertising, is now a common form of protest.

Technology has also globalized the stage on which much activism takes place. Local protests and campaigns

are increasingly connected to broad international issues and mobilizations, for example on trade rules,

against war, or around poverty. But many NGOs have been unprepared for, and a little uncomfortable about,

a world of activism without boundaries, where young people from South Africa can sign a petition on a

British NGO’s website, niche websites can garner hundreds of thousands of online activists, and young

people are turning up at international meetings at the UN (formerly the preserve of lawyers and

NGO directors).

Those NGOs that respond positively – by diversifying their activism tactics, such as moving letter-writing

online, encouraging creativity, organizing public events, or creating high-profile legal challenges – have

managed to link into young people’s consciousness. By providing a greater variety of ways for youth to

become involved – from the simple wearing of a wristband, to undergoing intensive training in campaigning

– they have won youth “market share”.

This chapter builds on the previous one as it explains how NGOs must recognize that working with young

people means working for young people. Youth activism will only work if NGOs understand young people’s

concerns and incorporate them into campaigns. This chapter showcases exciting new methods which should

become increasingly familiar to all activists in the coming years.

Building youth activism into project design

The most sure-fire strategy to ensure that youth activist programmes succeed is to include young people

throughout the design process – seeking their input to the issues addressed, the framing of key messages, and

the nature of the call to action. Conversely, a strategy guaranteed to fail is to tack on a youth “action” as an

afterthought, or when a young person asks “what can I do?”. Young people included in a consultation

process are likely to take personal ownership of the action and become the best advocate with their peers.

[box]

AI Canada (English-speaking)

Integrating Youth into the Stop Violence against Women campaign

AI Canada’s Women’s Rights Campaigner Cheryl Hotchkiss and Youth & Student Coordinator Shauna

Maclean have closely collaborated over the years, so when the time came to develop a Canadian approach to

the global Stop Violence Against Women (SVAW) campaign, they joined forces. Rather than developing a

“regular campaign” and separate “youth campaign”, a single set of SVAW materials in Canada were

designed to be accessible to all members, with special attention given to ensuring they were engaging for

young people. In hiring a company to design the logo, posters and visual materials for the SVAW campaign,

AI Canada chose a company known for its work with sports marketing and young people, rather than a

traditional non-profit oriented firm. A survey conducted by AI Canada found that the youth audience’s

perception of the campaign was positive. Overall, those involved emphasize the value of having a

campaigner that understands the vital importance of engaging young people.

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Everyone needs to feel a sense of ownership – of the process, and of the outcome’

Ashok Regmi, Programme Manager, International Youth Foundation

[end of quote]

[photo credit]

© Amnesty International Canada (English-speaking)

[end of photo credit]

Annual coordinated activism events

Annual coordinated events, such as a “day of action”, can be one of the best ways to facilitate global

activism. Young people like to feel they are part of something much bigger than themselves and have a

sense of solidarity with their peers in countries around the world. Such events are also effective in focusing

the public’s attention and create a sense of urgency What’s more, much of the work can be devolved to

local-level volunteers!

[box]

AI International Week of Student Action

AI’s International Week of Student Action (IWSA) provides an annual opportunity to mobilize the

movement’s student and youth membership around the world on a single issue. The 2004 IWSA was

considered a major success, with 1,000 youth and student groups in 38 countries taking part. Diverse

activities included petitions (gaining tens of thousands of signatures), candle-vigils, a song-writing contest,

web-based actions, and letter writing on urgent human rights cases. Factors considered central to the success

of the 2004 event when compared with previous years included having a simple and important global theme

– Stop Child Executions in the USA and Pakistan; the centralized development of campaigning materials,

including a basic web presence; and the February dates which facilitated maximum participation on

campuses during term time. Longer lead-time for planning enabled more AI sections to take part, receive

materials, and conduct their own translation where necessary.

[photo caption]

Amnesty youth in Lebanon participate in the International Week of Student Action

© Amnesty International Lebanon


[end of box]

Global Youth Service Day

Global Youth Service Day (GYSD) is an internationally coordinated day of youth action around health,

education, the environment and other global issues. It was devised by Youth Service America (based on

their National Youth Service Day) and the Global Youth Action Network. Taking advantage of the latter’s

national partners, GYSD operates in a highly decentralized manner – with “National Lead Agencies”

responsible for developing and implementing volunteer activities. While there have been broad annual

themes, such as Sustainable Development, activities are largely tailored to national priorities. The National

Lead Agencies are provided with a comprehensive toolkit which includes a guidebook, sample documents

and press releases, and promotional materials, as well as mini-grants of around US$2,000. In many countries,

National Lead Agencies also bring or raise significant additional financial and in-kind resources. Millions of

young people have participated since GYSD launched in 2000.

www.gysd.net

[box]

Good practices

Most work is decentralized to the national level where local resources and networks are mobilized.

Mini-grants are provided to stimulate activism.

Established processes for capturing what happens and sharing learning globally.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

South Korean youth participate in Global Youth Service Day

© Korea Youth volunteer Centre


Training in activism

The opportunity to learn and practice new skills is a major motivating factor for young people to get active.

The best types of training are those that recognize people’s diverse learning styles, include other young

people as facilitators, provide moments for personal reflection, and offer a space for people with similar

interests to connect. Training young people is resource intensive, however, and organizations must make

sure there is a clear pay-off for the issue they care about. The training should be seen as one element

within a broader youth activist development programme therefore, including internships, volunteer

opportunities, or specific organizational responsibilities.

Leaders Today

Leaders Today was founded by Marc and Craig Kielburger, who have also led international children’s rights

organization Free the Children. Leaders Today’s primary projects include international volunteer trips, a

motivational speaker circuit featuring volunteer youth, and yearly Global Leadership Summits, held in

Toronto, Canada.

www.leaderstoday.com

[box]

Good practices

Led by young people.

A growing range of materials and booklets to support the programme.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Participants in a Leaders Today workshop

© Free the Children


CHANGE Initiative

Oxfam’s CHANGE Initiative is a national programme of Oxfam America that trains college students to

become actively engaged in the organization’s social justice mission. Participants are selected through a

highly competitive application process and are brought together at Oxfam’s expense for one week of

intensive leadership training in Boston, USA each July, learning about Oxfam’s campaigning techniques and

particular campaigns – such as Make Trade Fair, Fair Trade Coffee, Hunger, and No Dirty Gold. After the

training camp, participants are asked to work on one or more Oxfam campaigns on their campuses, with

support from staff and campus advisers. The CHANGE Initiative is now being replicated by student

programmes of other Oxfam national affiliates.

www.oxfamamerica.org/whatyoucando/act_now/student_action/change

[box]

Good practices

Builds upon the existing campaigning priorities of the organization.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Taking part in the CHANGE Initiative

© Oxfam America


[box]

AIUSA Youth Activist Kollege

Each summer since 2003 AIUSA has organized a “Youth Activist Kollege” as an event for up-and-coming

AI leaders. The event builds on a model established by AI Canada (English-speaking). Fifty high-school and

college students (ages 15-23) from around the country are selected to attend; most of them have been

selected to lead student groups during the following school year. While subsidies are available, a general

participation fee is set at US$125 and participants are responsible for their travel costs. The agenda is

divided into two for those who have a good previous knowledge of AI, and those who are new. Workshops

are offered on issues such as violence against women, the US Patriot Act, and the death penalty. The young

people are also trained to run groups through practical-skills’ workshops, such as outreach – “Spreading the

word: getting everyone in on AI”; advocacy – “Winning human rights victories”; and membership retention

– “Getting them interested and making them stay”. As well as all these workshops, the Kollege offers human

rights films, an activist theatre performance, and local trips. Formal and informal evaluation suggests some

of the most positive aspects are the informal networking that takes place at the event, and a trend for

“Yaktivists” to take on new roles, including coordination roles, on various AI committees. To facilitate

learning and collaboration, AIUSA and AI Canada are now exchanging delegates between their major youth

training events.

www.amnestyusa.org/yak

[photo caption]

AIUSA Youth Activist Kollege

© Amnesty International USA


[end of box]

Seeds of Peace

Seeds of Peace was founded in 1993 to empower young people from regions of conflict to develop the

leadership skills required to advance reconciliation and co-existence. Over the years, Seeds of Peace has

worked intensively with more than 2,500 young people from four conflict regions – the Middle East, South

Asia, Cyprus, and the Balkans – at the International Camp in Maine, USA, and provided follow-up work

through a centre in Jerusalem, other international youth conferences, regional workshops, an adult educator

programme, and an online network and alumni programme. Many global leaders have applauded the work of

Seeds of Peace.

www.seedsofpeace.org

[box]

Good practices

Takes young people from conflict regions away from the pressures and political context of their day-

to-day lives.

Provides an ongoing support network, resource centre and training.

Has the support of prominent community leaders on both sides of conflict.

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

Advocates For Youth

US-based adolescent reproductive health organization with strong emphasis on peer-to-peer trainers

www.advocatesforyouth.org

Nordic-Baltic Minority Youth Network

Capacity-building organization for human rights activists from minority groups in Europe

www.network.ngo.lv

Rukus Society Action Camps

US-based training and support organization for campaigners on social justice, the environment and

human rights

www.ruckus.org/article.php?id=64

[end of box]

[box]

Youth oriented Action Toolkits

Seven Steps to Social Action (Free the Children)

www.freethechildren.com/youthzone/makeithappen/startupkit.htm

Youth Guide to Action (TakingITGlobal)

www.takingitglobal.org/action/ guidetoaction/

YouthActionNet Toolkit (International Youth Foundation)

www.youthactionnet.org/toolkit

FireItUp: a youth action manual (Youth Action Network)

www.youthactionnetwork.org/rac/Fireitup/index.html

Just Add Consciousness (Oxfam America)

www.oxfamamerica.org/materials/just_add_consciousness/justaddconsciousness.pdf

Organizational Development Manual for Youth-Driven Organizations (Environmental Youth Alliance)

www.eya.ca/index.php?id=71 (Designed for larger scale youth-led initiatives)

Action Guide Tips (Shine)

www.shine.com/resources_action_guide_tips.php

[end of box]

Activism around international negotiations

This is a far cry from the days when youth activism was limited to mock-simulation events or protests

beyond police barricades. Young people have had an active presence on the inside of recent major

international meetings and policy processes as international organizations and structures increasingly

understand the importance of listening to future generations. At key UN meetings on children’s issues,

young people have lobbyed their governments’ delegations around the use of the death penalty in cases

involving minors. Youth are also designated a regular speaking slot in the Commission on Sustainable

Development. In most intergovernmental processes, youth are now recognized as a “major stakeholder

group”, with their own caucuses, trans-national networks, and policy positions.

The World Summit on the Information Society Youth Caucus

The World Summit on the Information Society Youth Caucus was founded by several like-minded

organizations at the UN World Summit on the Information Society first preparatory meeting in July 2002. Its

purpose was to ensure that young people’s voices were included in global public policy questions relating to

the technology revolution. A major strength of the Caucus has been a diverse representation of youth from a

broad range of technology fields (web developers, radio producers, open source programmers, and youth

active in information and communications technology projects related to access, the environment, education

and human rights). The Caucus engaged with other civil society actors and created timely and omprehensive

position papers to support lobbying – building relationships with friendly governments and securing a

number of changes to the Summit’s communiqué. The Caucus was the only civil society group to second a

staff member to the Summit Executive Secretariat, and organized a large pavilion and suite of side-events at

the December 2003 and November 2005 Summits. The Caucus coordinated national level activities through

its network of volunteers in 30 countries who were given mini-grants to help them engage 90,000 further

young people who could not attend the international meetings.

www.wsisyouth.org

[box]

Good practices

Run by young people.

Actions at national and international levels feed into each other.

Presence at key moments and in key places.

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Don’t underestimate youth. You’ll sometimes find they’ve read more of the conference briefing documents

than you have and are more prepared to provide feedback.’

Terri Willard, International Institute for Sustainable Development

[end of quote]

[photo caption]

A young delegate addresses the plenary of the UN World Summit on the Information Society.

© TakingITGlobal


UN Youth Delegates

UN Youth Delegates are increasingly included within national government delegations to the UN. There are

several standing resolutions – repeated biannually as part of the UN General Assembly’s Youth Resolution1

– requesting that countries include young people on their delegations to all UN meetings, in particular the

General Assembly. Some countries – such as Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden – have done

so regularly. Australia has sent a youth delegate to the General Assembly since 1999. Several developing

nations such as Bangladesh, India and Indonesia have included youth delegates at least once. The UK sent

two youth delegates to the General Assembly in 2005. Other countries regularly include youth on their

delegations to other international meetings (particularly the World Summit on Sustainable Development and

the World Summit on the Information Society). Youth delegates are officially appointed by each country’s

Foreign Ministry, but the task is often delegated to a national youth council or UN Youth Association. The

youth are occasionally able to influence their delegation’s approach to particular issues, as well as acting as

a point person for youth-specific concerns. Almost all youth delegates also have a significant public

outreach role – engaging their nation’s young people through meetings and in the media – before, during and

after their time at the UN.

1 UN Reference: A/RES/60/

www.un.org/esa/socdev/unyin/youthrep.htm

[box]

Good practices

Youth often selected by their peers at national youth organizations.

Effective communication by youth delegate back to home constituencies.

Growing diversity of youth delegates.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Young people participate in their national delegations at the UN

© UNESCO


Daily Summit

Daily Summit was an online blog page created by the British Council to provide comprehensive coverage of

the World Summit on the Information Society. Part of their “Connecting Futures” initiative, which includes

numerous projects designed to facilitate dialogue between young people from the UK and other countries,

the Daily Summit involved a team of 10 young professional journalists from media organizations in Britain

and the Middle East (from the BBC and Al Jazeera, to small local newspapers). The team posted more than

500 blog entries – short notes conveniently organized by topic on subjects ranging from Iranian censorship

and Nigerian scammers, to life at the Summit. Participants at the Summit could post comments on each

article, interact with the authors, and send article tips. The blog was perfectly suited to the intense and

multilayered nature of the Summit – the many ideas, events, and activities swirling throughout the website

reflected the conference itself. The British Council has also run similar blogs around the World Summit on

Sustainable Development, and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Johannesburg.

www.dailysummit.net

[box]

Good practices

Create a new space for open dialogue and idea sharing.

Participation both from those at the event and others around the world.

Neutral space of UN provides safe space for collaboration between young journalists of different

backgrounds.

[end of box]

Navigating International Meetings:

A Pocketbook Guide to Effective Youth Participation

Navigating International Meetings: A Pocketbook Guide to Effective Youth Participation is a handy book

for young people attending international meetings and prepcoms organized by the UN and other multilateral

agencies. Intended to encourage more young people to attend UN meetings and enable them to be effective

participants, the guidebook provides background on meetings, structures and process, outlines different ways

young people can participate, and provides practical information – such as how to raise funds, budget wisely,

collaborate with other youth, and take action further once the meeting is over. Developed by the United

Nations Association in Canada, the Pocketbook builds primarily on the experience of youth who participated

in the process of the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, and was peer-reviewed by many

youth organizations and networks.

www.unac.org/en/pocketbook/index.asp

[box]

Good practices

Written by young people based on personal experience.

Suitable as much for youth from the North as from the South.

[end of box]

[box]

8 reasons why youth participation in International Meetings can be ineffective

Lack of real political support for youth presence.

Youth mobilized in a token manner by adult secretariat to generate publicity.

Youth involved at the end of the process in ceremonial events, rather than when decisions are

actually being taken.

Youth lack issue-specific expertise or the substantive case for their presence is not made; they are

considered solely valuable for their personal testimony or experience, rather than listened to for their

opinions, per se.

Lack of sustained presence throughout long political processes, or lack of significant experience or

knowledge of prior processes which have fed into the current process.

Lack of inclusion of young people from a diverse range of countries (and lack of engagement with

governments in the developing world).

Youth spend too much time organizing and communicating among themselves, rather than

influencing outwardly.

Lack of engagement with and by mainstream NGO allies that could lend resources and public

relations assistance.

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

The Youth Coalition

Canadian group that facilitates youth advocacy in international negotiations around reproductive health

www.youthcoalition.org

SustainUS

US coalition of groups and individual youth active around sustainable development, particularly in the lead-

up to Rio +10

www.sustainus.org

[end of box]

Creative tools, techniques, and technologies

Young people are often quick to use new technology to communicate, connect, express themselves and

demonstrate solidarity. Exploiting messaging and online interactivity has become almost commonplace in

the North, and young people in countries such as China and the Philippines are also using it very effectively.

Meanwhile, many organisations around the world are also rediscovering the power of lower-tech

communication methods – such as art projects, performances and mass mobilisations – which attract

different types of people and do not always depend on literacy or shared language.

[box]

Control Arms Million Faces petition

The Control Arms Million Faces petition is the key public action within the Control Arms campaign, a joint

initiative of AI, Oxfam, and the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) with the vision of

stopping the human misery caused by irresponsible arms sales. Rather than a traditional list of signatures,

the petition gathers images of people all around the world to demonstrate to governments the need for

effective and urgent action. People sign onto the campaign by contributing a photo (or drawing!) of their

face – the aim is to collect one million faces by July 2006 when they will be presented at the UN Conference

on Small Arms and Light Weapons – where governments will be asked to sign up to a global Arms Trade

Treaty. As of January 2006, more than 700,000 individuals had joined the Million Faces Petition, with

290,000 of these displayed on the website. The Control Arms campaign has been particularly successful

with young people because of its creative and simple approach to activism, clear and powerful language, and

range of online downloads such as wallpapers and banner advertisements.

www.controlarms.org

[end of box]

MoveOn.org

MoveOn.org is a US-based online action network. Founded during the Lewinsky scandal of 1998, MoveOn

was initially just an online petition to “Censure President Clinton and Move On to Pressing Issues Facing the

Nation”. Within days, hundreds of thousands of individuals had signed up. Recognizing that they could

create huge new online constituencies for progressive issues, MoveOn became an ongoing programme, later

merging with the largest online peace petition following 9/11. MoveOn truly entered the public

consciousness during the 2004 Presidential campaign, raising millions of dollars for television advertising

on key issues. A major innovation was the site’s participatory nature – instead of hiring celebrities or

advertising agencies to develop their public service announcements, they held a nationwide competition

where members could both submit their own and vote for those that would be aired. Advertisements were

often so funny or biting that even those not aired on TV received exposure through viral email forward.

Today, MoveOn has 2 million registered online activists who take action on key issues – current priorities

include Social Security and the 2006 Congressional Campaign. Members also have electronic input on

which issues should be taken up by Moveon.

www.moveon.org

[box]

Good practices

Gained high visibility in mainstream media and a mass audience.

Launched off the back of a highly topical current event.

Expects little of members to begin with, but gathers contact information for long-term re-

engagement.

Creates campaign sub-projects or milestones which seem achievable to

the participants.

[end of box]

Indymedia

Indymedia was founded in 1999 by various individuals and alternative media organizations to provide

grassroots coverage of the WTO protests in Seattle, USA, through the publishing of live reports, photos, and

audio and video footage via its website. Considered the “communication vehicle of the anti-globalization

movement”, the site received significant attention from the mainstream media, and has since expanded into a

vast network of autonomous websites and Indymedia Centres, reporting on protests and broader progressive

issues in more than 30 countries and across every continent, in a large number of languages. While

Indymedia involves hundreds of volunteers, there are no paid staff. The major cost – webserver hosting – is

covered by sponsorship from a major hosting company. The motto of Indymedia, “Become the Media”,

reflects their grassroots approach, encouraging a blurring of the lines between journalist and activist.

www.indymedia.org

[box]

Good practices

Events provide a focus for mobilizing reporters and organizing coverage.

Use of open-source software platform enables new local sites.

[end of box]

PhotoVoice

PhotoVoice specializes in participatory projects that give voice to marginalized (often illiterate) individuals

and victims of human rights abuse through the power of the photo. PhotoVoice was founded in 1998, and

has organized projects with homeless adults and child refugees in London, UK, (where it is headquartered),

young girls in Afghanistan, Bhutanese refugees in Nepal, street kids in Vietnam, orphans in Cambodia, and

disabled youth in Bangladesh. PhotoVoice provides participants with cameras and professional photographic

training and asks them to capture – through images – their families, daily experiences, thoughts on society

and hopes for the future. PhotoVoice work has been exhibited in over 40 locations, often in exhibition

spaces close to where the projects were realized (including in a refugee camp). Their photos have also been

published in mainstream media including The Guardian and The Boston Globe. PhotoVoice is now fostering

a growing network of independent partners around the world who employ the same technique.

www.photovoice.org

[box]

Good practices

Simple, inexpensive and easily replicable model.

Utilizes the power of the image to tell a story – a picture is worth a thousand words!

Empowers marginalized communities to express themselves without the need for literacy (or

without knowledge of the dominant language).

[end of box]

[photo credit]

© Tiffany Fairey/PhotoVoice


The Colombian Children’s Movement for Peace

The Colombian Children’s Movement for Peace was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1998 for its

valiant attempt to create a “circuit breaker” in Colombia’s long-running civil war. The movement was kick-

started when UNICEF, churches, and NGOs brought together young leaders from communities across the

country to discuss national collaboration. Many of the youth had themselves lost family members and

friends to the conflict. Together they launched the Children’s Mandate for Peace, Life and Freedom, a

nation-wide “referendum” in which children could “vote” on their human rights. The youth mobilized and

educated other children about peace and their rights through rallies, marches, media campaigns, art contests,

school projects and talking to people door-to-door. On 25 October 1996, more than 2.7 million children

nationwide went to the voting polls to express their desire for peace and human rights. Their act of courage

inspired more than 10 million adults in Colombia to vote “yes” to a similar Citizen’s Mandate for Peace,

Life and Freedom a year later. UNICEF credits the Children’s Movement with helping ensure that peace

talks between the government and the armed opposition were re-started. It was the largest social

mobilization ever seen in Colombia and the largest vote taken in the country’s history. (The Children’s

Movement is also the subject of the powerful CNN film, “Soldiers of Peace”.)

www.peacenews.info/issues/2444/cameron.html

www.turnerlearning.com/cnn/soldiers/

[box]

Good practices

Led entirely by local young people generating significant integrity with both youth and adults.

Several major NGOs and UN agencies have provided logistical support without intervening

significantly in the young people’s action and plans.

Uses the framework of internationally agreed human rights norms to challenge locally “political”

issues.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Students act as peace educators with younger children in Colombia

© UNICEF/HQ99-0165/Jeremy Horner – Colombia


[box]

AI Netherlands’ use of mobile phone SMS

AI Netherlands has been using SMS as a form for grassroots action since 2000, when it was launched as part

of the Stop Torture campaign. Each fortnight SMS Action Network members are sent an SMS with

information about an Urgent Action. By replying to the message, people automatically add their name to a

petition on the subject which is forwarded to the relevant authorities. There is a cost of 0.25 euros to receive

and send each message. The programme was dubbed Stop Torture Fast and was promoted via a major

advertising campaign – including posters in railway stations, radio and television spots, flyers and mini

“business card” type brochures. Thousands of people – especially those not already involved with AI – have

signed onto SMS alerts, which have become even more popular than letter writing among young people.

[photo caption]

The popularity of mobile phones makes them an ideal campaigning tool.

© Private


[end of box]

[quote]

‘Be open to the laughter and the tears, and have patience – young people have busy lives too!’

Pip Collin, Youth Involvement Manager, Inspire Foundation

[end of quote]

Meetup.com 20 Million Loud

Meetup.com 20 Million Loud was a joint initiative of Meetup.com and MTV in the USA with the mission to

mobilize 20 million young US citizens to be a “decisive factor” in the 2004 presidential election. Through

the straight-forward Meetup.com website, young people interested in politics could organize, promote, or

find out about local meetings in their cities and communities to discuss the election, upload photos, and

continue to keep in touch. Tens of thousands of young people across the USA participated in a 20 Million

Loud Meetup each Tuesday evening – held on campuses, in bars and cafés, or even as street parties. Many

events have turned into ongoing networks of local political activists. Meetup.com is used more broadly for

many other campaigns and activities – two of the more popular activist themed Meetups are a general human

rights strand, and the Human Rights Campaign which focuses on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender

(LGBT) rights in the USA. A few local AI groups even use Meetup.com to coordinate themselves.

www.20millionloud.meetup.com

www.humanrights.meetup.com

[box]

Good practices

Provides “offline” nourishment for online activists.

Almost the entire framework is coordinated by end-participants on a voluntary basis.

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

Wiretap

Online magazine written by and for young activists, with a US emphasis

www.alternet.org/wiretap20945

Greenpeace Cyberactivist community

Simple yet effective online activism centre developed by a major international NGO

act.greenpeace.org

New Tactics project

Online resource and discussion of human rights tactics

www.newtactics.org/main.php

[end of box]

Campaigning on Economic, Social and Cultural rights

Much of the focus of youth activism in recent years has been on poverty and trade justice within the “anti-

globalization” movement. Many sub-campaigns, on issues from anti-sweatshop clothing to the price of

privatized water, have couched economic, social and labour issues within a human rights framework. The

most successful and long-lasting of these efforts have combined global events and communications networks

with on-the-ground engagement of young people in developing countries.

Global Youth Employment Summit Campaign (YES)

Global Youth Employment Summit Campaign (YES) is a multi-stakeholder initiative which promotes

projects and policy change to address the global problem of youth unemployment – with the aim of creating

500 million sustainable livelihoods by 2012. What sets YES apart from other campaigns, (including the

UN/World Bank-led Youth Employment Network) is its focus on building grassroots networks of

stakeholders (YES Country Networks) to stimulate local policy change and develop pilot initiatives,

connected through an online knowledge-sharing community. The YES Campaign has also focused on

the meaningful inclusion of young people in its work. More than half of the 2,000 delegates at the 2002 YES

launch in Alexandria, Egypt, were youth leaders and entrepreneurs (the rest coming from government,

business and the UN). Along with the Country Networks, major programmes of YES include research and

reports on youth employment issues, international knowledge- sharing meetings, grant and mentorship

programmes, and YES entrepreneurship training “academies”.

www.yesweb.org

[box]

Good practices

Equal emphasis given to building local stakeholder networks and big global events.

YES Campaign Summits act as milestones to reflect upon and renew the campaign.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Delegates to the Youth Employment Summit in Mexico

© Education Development Centre


Highly Affected, Rarely Considered

Highly Affected, Rarely Considered was the first campaign launched by the Oxfam International Youth

Parliament, and looked at the effects of globalization on young people. Consultation with more than 400

youth organizations from some 120 countries resulted in a detailed report covering key topics ranging from

privatisation of education and access to water, to trafficking of young women, violence and security, and

HIV/AIDS prevention. An attractive and straightforward toolkit was also produced. The campaign’s key

messages were presented at several international meetings, including the World Social Forum and the WTO

ministerial summits.

www.iyp.oxfam.org/news/publications

[box]

Good practices

Provides a platform for voices from the South to participate in the debate around globalization –

previously dominated by youth from the North.

Publications in a variety of formats to address different audiences – youth, policy-makers etc.

[end of box]

The National Youth Measles Campaign

The National Youth Measles Campaign is a fundraising and awareness initiative led by the US Red Cross

National Youth Council and their partners in the Global Measles Initiative – the World Health Organization,

UNICEF, the UN Foundation, and the Centre for Disease Control. The Measles Initiative’s overall goal is to

provide immunization for 200 million young people, stopping 1.2 million preventable child deaths each year.

Students in at least 100 Red Cross chapters have raised nearly half a million dollars towards the effort –

through everything from organizing sporting events, band competitions and film screenings to washing cars.

The National Youth Council has provided US Red Cross chapters with simple information on the measles

problem, a toolkit to assist with peer education and school speaking, and tips on potential fundraising events

and activities. Youth trained in first aid techniques at other Red Cross societies worldwide are involved in

administering the vaccine on the ground. The Red Cross Youth Council hope that by engaging youth in an

initiative where the contribution is clear and achievable (US$1 buys one vaccine and saves one life), they

will instil a sense of global civic engagement and eventually inspire action around other major health

challenges.

www.measlesinitiative.org/youth/news.asp

[box]

Good practices

Clear message about the difference youth will make by participating in the programme, i.e. “donate

x, provide vaccines for x many people”.

[end of box]

Students for Bhopal

Students for Bhopal is a youth-led initiative dedicated to campaigning for the victims of the Bhopal disaster,

the world’s worst industrial tragedy. Initially established as a network of university student groups in the

USA targeting the Dow Chemical Company’s failure to provide proper damages to victims, youth groups

around the world have extended the campaign’s scope to highlight links with pollution and public danger

issues in their own communities. For example, an African youth conference on Bhopal was recently held in

Kpémé, Togo, with up to 700 members of the local community and young environmental activists attending

from Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Niger and Nigeria. Kpémé was the site of

a major phosphate mine and organizers wanted the local community to see their injustice in the context of

the global environmental movement. The event included a slide show presenting the stories of Kpémé and

Bhopal side by side, poetry readings, a tree-planting and the making of a banner to be sent to Bhopal in

solidarity with youth there. As a result of the youth event, the Kpémé community have decided to launch

their own legal case for damages.

www.studentsforbhopal.org

[box]

Good practices

Creates grassroots linkage between communities on different continents who face the same fight for

their economic, social and cultural rights.

Uses variety of hands-on techniques to involve the entire community.

[end of box]

[box]

Toolkits for young people looking to evaluate local or national policies related to youth

Making Commitments Matter: A toolkit for young people to evaluate national youth policy (UN Youth

Programme)

www.un.org/esa/socdev/unyin/untoolkit.htm

Toolkits for reporting and research on children

Ethical Guidelines: Principles for ethical reporting on Children (UNICEF)

www.unicef.org/media/media_tools_guidelines.html

[end of box]

[box]

Also of interest:

Global Justice

US student organization that operates successful national campaigns around HIV/AIDS and child rights

issues

www.globaljusticenow.org

[end of box]

Supporting young human rights defenders

The abundance of causes in need of support and far-sighted NGOs using techniques set out in this book,

have certainly led to an increase in youth activism. If young people are to remain engaged, however, they

need to be supported and encouraged. Several programmes have therefore sprung up to offer grants, provide

technical assistance, build campaign networks and offer young activists the recognition they deserve. But

much more needs to be done in this field.

The Reebok Youth Human Rights Award

The Reebok Youth Human Rights Award was founded in 1988 to recognize young activists (aged 30 or

under) who have made significant contributions to human rights causes through non-violent means. The

prize aims to generate positive international attention for the recipients, as well as awarding a US$50,000

grant from the Reebok Human Rights Foundation to further their work. Recent winners include a HIV/AIDS

activist from Nigeria, an attorney from New York City fighting racism in the justice system, and a young

Afghan working to create a culture of human rights. In 2002, Dita Sari declined to accept the award,

believing it was hypocritical for the company to recognize her efforts as a unionist in Indonesia, while they

continued to provide sub-standard conditions to workers in her country.

www.reebok.com/static/global/initiatives/rights/ awards/index.html

[box]

Good practices

Recognizes outstanding achievements.

Has generally been seen as part of a broader positive programme by Reebok to improve its

commitment to human rights (rather than as a token publicity-seeking gesture).

[end of box]

Forefront Leaders

Forefront Leaders was established by the winners of the Reebok Youth Human Rights Award in 1998 as a

“global network of human rights defenders”. Today, Forefront works with more than 50 human rights

organizations in 30 countries. Forefront provides these partners with focused technical assistance, access to

technology and funding, support in times of crisis, and training that emphasizes exchange between activists.

Forefront also strengthens and serves the broader grassroots human rights community by pooling and

distilling its partners’ broad base of knowledge and experience into publications, case studies and other

practical tools.

www.forefrontleaders.org

[box]

Good practices

Small and nimble with an ability to respond quickly to crises.

Leverages the experience, expertise, contacts and profile of a peer network of young human rights

activists.

[end of box]

The Innovative Learning Initiative

The Innovative Learning Initiative is the working umbrella-title for a suite of youth-oriented initiatives

affiliated with Ashoka, which pioneers the profession of “social entrepreneurship”. Founded in 1980,

Ashoka now has more than 1,500 “fellows” in 53 countries who receive financial investment and

professional services to enable them to successfully launch their social ventures. The first Innovative

Learning Initiative project was Youth Venture, which provides start-up funding, mentorship and support

to teams of young people to develop voluntary community-serving ventures. The objective is to shift

society’s mindset to value, support and expect youth-led social change. Other Innovative Learning Initiative

projects are now launching in Brazil, India, South Africa and Thailand, which aim to create a global

movement of thousands of young change-makers.

www.ashoka.org

www.youthventure.org

[box]

Good practices

Leverages the network, funding and brand name of the established and esteemed Ashoka

programme.

Benefits from the powerful knowledge and experience of 400+ Ashoka social entrepreneurs who

work with youth.

New programmes are being developed locally to respond to particular contexts.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Young social entrepreneurs gather in Thailand

© Ashoka


[box]


Youth Bursary Programme

AI Canada’s five-year old bursary programme provides young people with mini-grants of up to Can$600

(US$490) to enable them to further their human rights activism work. This is interpreted broadly and may

include contributing to an airfare to volunteer on a human rights project overseas, the cost of attending non-

AI conferences, or fees of small training courses (however, it cannot be used towards university study).

While the programme is open to non-members, it has so far only been promoted through AI publications. A

selection committee meets four times a year to review applications and make decisions, while the AI Youth

Coordinator monitors disbursement of funds.At the completion of their project, bursary winners provide AI

with a written report.

[end of box]

Global Youth In Action Awards

Global Youth In Action Awards is a programme of New York-based youth group, the Global Youth Action

Network. The programme provides US$1,000 awards to around 10 young people each year, with the support

of donors such as UNESCO, Prodigy Internet and the Shei’rah Foundation. Recent winners include a 21-

year-old from Kenya who started an organization called Kid Rights to provide street girls with life skills and

income-generating knowledge, and a 21-year-old from Afghanistan who started a series of libraries for

young women in Kabul to borrow books. The awards receive hundreds of applicants each year, and are

judged by a panel of young leaders from around the world using an online judging system.

www.youthlink.org

[box]

Good practices

Well promoted programme receives a good number of high quality applications.

[end of box]

World Youth Centre

World Youth Centre (WYC) is an ambitious project to create an international centre for the support of global

youth initiatives. Originally launched as a “legacy project” for Toronto, Canada, unsuccessful 2008 Olympic

Games bid, WYC has been taken forward by former City Council staff and young people. While the plans

for a physical centre are under development, pilot projects have been launched including an annual gathering

of 15 exceptional social entrepreneurs under the age of 24. The programme includes skills training, values

seminars, keynote speakers, visits to local Toronto non-profit organizations, and planning for local projects

that the entrepreneurs will implement on return home. What makes WYC unusual is the length of its

intensive programme – four weeks.

www.worldyouthcentre.com

[box]

Good practices

Developing a pilot programme to test basic concepts and raise support.

[end of box]

[box]

key point

Toronto is a hub for international youth initiatives with several based in the city.

[end of box]

YES Youth Leadership Jams

YES Youth Leadership Jams are the primary project of Youth for Environmental Sanity, a Californian

organization, USA, that “connects, inspires and empowers young change-makers to join forces for a thriving,

just, and sustainable way of life for all”. A growing number of Jams each year bring together youth human

rights and social justice advocates to share ideas and reflect on their work. The Jams are small, flexibly

facilitated gatherings, with a focus on inspiration as much as learning new skills or planning action. The

flagship Jam is the “World Youth Leadership Jam” – held in 2004 in India, and in 2005 in Senegal. Other

recent Jams include “Youth Jam USA: Leveraging Privilege for Social Change” with participants only from

high-wealth backgrounds, the “Art In Action YES Jam” bringing together young cultural activists, as well as

Jams in Latin America, and one purely for indigenous activists.

www.youthjams.org

[box]

Good practices

Emphasis on expert facilitation.

Rare space for reflection – takes place far away from the young activists’ homes or places of work.

[end of box]

[photo credit]

© Private


[box]

Also of interest:

GlobalYouthConnect

Youth-led network that sends delegations to visit and report on countries suffering human rights abuses

www.globalyouthconnect.org

YouthAction Net Awards

US$1000 awards to youth worldwide who have taken action to create change; sponsored by Nokia

www.youthactionnet.org

YouthBank

Major new UK initiative providing mini-grants to young people leading projects benefiting their local

communities

www.youthbank.org.uk

Children and Youth in Action

Network of groups of organized street and working children across 20 African countries

www.enda.sn/eja/

World Meeting of Working Children

Meeting bringing together street and working children to find common cause; held in Berlin, Germany

www.iicrd.org/cap/node/view/144

[end of box]

3. Participation Now you have planned campaigns and initiatives to engage youth, you have consulted widely, listened to

young opinions, and used their voice to present your goals, offered them a network, a website, a newsletter.

Thousands, maybe tens of thousands, of young people have signed up to various actions.

But something is still missing. There is no structure that encourages long-term youth support – once the

action is over, the youth move on. Expectations about growing activism are dashed, financial predictions are

unfulfilled. Creating a clear youth membership structure is one option. Other organizations, such as UN

agencies, do not necessarily want their own youth membership but still consider young people as

stakeholders to be incorporated into planning and governance processes.

[pullquote]

THERE IS SIMPLY NO ‘ONE RIGHT WAY’ TO STRUCTURE THE PARTICIPATION OF YOUNG

PEOPLE IN AN ORGANIZATION.

[end of pullquote]

The last 10 years has seen an explosion in the number of youth participation initiatives – from youth

advisory boards to internship programmes, from youth forums to training workshops. Some of these have

had considerable success – adding to organizational strength in terms of numbers, diversity, money and

activism. But the failure of others has left their instigators jaded. They wonder why, with the best intentions,

their youth programmes failed to create impact and become sustainable.

There is no one, right way to structure youth participation in an organization. What works for the World

Bank is unlikely to work for Greenpeace. What works for Amnesty International may not work for an

African regional student network. Organizations must identify their key priorities and ask themselves some

crucial questions:

Does the organization need young people to become formal members or does it place more value in sporadic

participation?

Is the working culture and brand so unattractive to youth that a new, separate division is needed for the

younger audience?

Should responsibility for youth be streamed across the organization, or should there be a specific team for

youth work?

The most successful participation initiatives will be those built on a variety of approaches, and which can

therefore meet all complexities of youth participation.

Ensuring long-term youth participation – and managing the transition from youth member-activist to adult

member-activist – requires a multi-pronged approach, and a clear understanding of the needs of the youth

you are hoping will participate. What a 15-year-old needs is very different from what a 23-year-old needs,

which is different again from what the lifelong member and participant needs to remain active into their 30s.

By its nature, a dedicated youth structure – whether staffed or volunteered – will have a high turnover,

which needs careful managing. And if there isn’t a high turnover, there should be! Responsibility must be

transferred regularly and effectively between young leaders, to avoid the creation of “professional youth”.

The aim is not simply to have a youth participant within an adult bureaucracy, the aim is to use that

participation to change and grow and reach new audiences.

This chapter illustrates the third part of AI’s youth strategy, with clear examples of good practice. The

organizations it looks at either have clear and distinct infrastructures for youth participation, or they work

hard in other areas to include young people throughout their lives.

Effective youth structures and training

Carefully structuring the participation of young people is essential to ensure effectiveness. The good

practices illustrated here generally devolve as much responsibility as possible to local young people and

structures. This keeps costs down, but only works with strong centralized support, training and resources.

[box]

AIUK Student Action Network

AIUK’s Student Action Network (STAN) is possibly the oldest student structure within the AI movement –

the minutes of its first conference are dated 1979, but it was probably founded even earlier. The Network

connects nearly 100 student groups on campuses across the UK, each with up to 300 members. These groups

meet regularly, participate in AI Action Files (long-term work usually on behalf of a known victim of human

rights violations), organize fundraising and conduct media outreach with local press. Each group selects

office bearers democratically such as President, Secretary, and Events Officer. AIUK provides office bearers

with support including a series of How To leaflets (“How to Run a Great Freshers’ Fair” (events for new

students), “How to Recruit and Retain Members” etc.), and a national training event in June in preparation

for the start of the next academic year. The other key event in the STAN calendar is the Student Annual

General Conference and AGM – two and a half days filled of workshops on campaigning, networking and

training, with inspiring external speakers such as former prisoners of conscience.

The STAN committee is elected by all student groups at the AGM, often with many nominees vying for the

six places. The committee meets monthly. The terms of reference include providing input to AI’s work

through the Activism Planning Conference and ad hoc consultation, as well as developing policies and

participating in AIUK’s General AGM where the STAN committee have, among other things, played a

central advocacy role for the inclusion of those under 18.

[end of box]

For further examples of training, see Activism.

[box]

AI Sweden Leadership Training Programme

In 2003, AI Sweden launched its leadership training programme, an intensive two-year programme designed

to increase activity and foster the development of new leaders within the section. While most of the

participants are young, the programme works best when it includes some older participants as well. The

training programme consists of six different sections: human rights and AI; public speaking and training;

campaigning; group dynamics; formal management and decision-making; and leadership. During each

section, participants are able to exchange experiences and ideas, and get to know each other better.

Participants are selected by means of written applications. The programme has already increased activism

within the section, and its modest cost has been more than offset by fundraising initiatives developed by

participants.

[end of box]

[box]


Youth Internship Programme

AI Canada’s formalized Youth Internship Programme was established in 2000 to assist young people

beginning a career in the human rights sector. To ensure its Programme is accessible and attractive to

Canadians of diverse backgrounds, AI Canada’s internships are (unusually) offered with a modest salary

equivalent to other summer jobs, allowing struggling students to apply. The Programme is promoted through

AI publications and on the section website, as well as on charity job websites and in universities. More than

600 applications are received each year. In selecting the two annual interns, preference is given to those

without previous comparable experience. The selection committee includes a former intern.

Interns are appointed a staff mentor, given an extensive two-week orientation and attend a range of meetings.

During their summer with AI, interns apply their own skills to diverse projects, such as revamping the youth

website or developing an activist toolkit around a priority campaign. The Programme includes a midway

assessment and a debriefing and evaluation.

[end of box]

[box]

AIUK: Using Interns to Build Capacity of Local Groups

AIUK’s extensive support for its local student groups would not be possible without the work of two

dedicated internship positions each year. Both unpaid positions last six months and involve coordinating

support for existing groups, developing groups, and outreach on campuses without an AI presence. The first

position supports “Freshers’ Week”, the first week of the academic year where many students sign up to

campus clubs. The intern travels to universities with no AI presence and organizes stalls to seed groups, and

helps new and developing groups organize their first meetings of the year, book rooms, speak about AI, and

facilitate relationships with local student unions. The second position coordinates an annual two-week

speakers’ tour, bringing human rights defenders from other countries to share their experiences with AI

student members. The tour visits 10-15 universities throughout the UK. The intern coordinates everything

from speaker identification, organizing visas, liaising with student groups, securing media coverage, and

conducting evaluation. AIUK promotes the internships through its membership and networks, as well as in

specific universities, and in the past has provided at least one of the internships with a relatively generous

stipend.

[end of box]

The Heritage Foundation

The Heritage Foundation, one of the most prominent conservative think-tanks in the USA operates a large

and well-resourced youth internship programme each year, peaking during the university break over the

summer months. In 2005, the summer programme involves 64 interns assigned to work across the

organization from research on domestic or foreign policy, to communications, event management and

accounting. For an NGO, the Heritage Foundation has made an unusually large investment in its internship

programme – with an overall programme cost of US$570,000 a year, all interns are provided with a

US$2,500 stipend and the opportunity to participate in training, special events and excursions. In addition,

Heritage provides 30 interns with accommodation.

www.heritage.org/About/Internships/

[box]

Good practices

The prestige of the Heritage Foundation attracts a high number of applicants.

Investment in accommodation and stipends streamline programme management and open up the

opportunity to a broader range of applicants.

High-level commitment from Heritage Foundation senior management to the success of the

programme.

[end of box]

Involving youth in decision-making

Different organizations need – and encourage – different levels of youth involvement in their decision-

making structures. For associations based around a membership structure, ensuring youth members are

present in governance is a democratic necessity. Other organizations have established formal mechanisms to

engage young people in their boards and annual meetings. And several institutions have created forums

and encouraged youth “caucuses” that enable young people to be present at – and arguably influence –

decision-making without giving them an actual vote.

UNESCO’s Youth Forum

UNESCO Youth Forum immediately precedes the meeting of UNESCO highest-level decision-making body,

the General Conference, held every wo years at headquarters in Paris, France. The first Youth Forum was

held in 1999. The 150 delegates are nominated by their governments’ National Commission for UNESCO,

and a small but growing number are fully integrated into their national delegations to the General

Conference as well as the Youth Forum. However, a drawback of this approach is that by devolving

selection to the national level, the process becomes less transparent. Each Forum has dealt with a small

number of substantive issues (such as peace, water, ICTs for development, poverty reduction, and

HIV/AIDS), and reviewed UNESCO’s modalities for engaging with young people. Each Forum elects a

drafting committee, responsible for producing recommendations and a detailed report. A young person is

also elected by the group to take a presentation to the General Conference once the Youth Forum is over. In

2003 this presentation (and follow-up lobbying) saw an unprecedented number of co-sponsors for a

resolution increasing support for UNESCO’s youth programming.

www.unesco.org/youth

[box]

Good practices

UNESCO has long-term commitment to the Youth Forum, and thus an emphasis on learning and

improving with each session.

Opportunity for young people to crystallize input and present it directly to government delegations

in the Opening Plenary.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

A delegate to the UNESCO Youth Forum

© UNESCO


United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Youth Gathering and Youth

Advisory Council

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Global Youth Gathering and Youth Advisory Council is a

biannual meeting held to coincide with UNEP’s Governing Council. The 2005 event brought together 44

leaders of environmental youth organizations from 34 countries. Delegates are selected by UNEP rather than

their national government. During the retreat, delegates elect 12 members (two per region) of the UNEP

Youth Advisory Council, who are given the responsibility of representing youth in intergovernmental and

international environmental negotiations over the following two years. Whether or not the youth are indeed

able to effectively represent their peers, they perform an important coordination and networking function for

international environmental youth activists. They have also advised UNEP on better ways of incorporating

youth in UNEP’s activities.

www.unep.org/tunza

[box]

Good practices

UNEP Youth Advisory Council provides sustained forum for youth organizing between Gatherings.

[end of box]

[box]

key point

Size of the Advisory Council ensures that there will always remain an active group.

[end of box]

[quote]

‘In my experience, the problem with youth participation never lies with the youth. It is always with the

adults! Therefore the golden rule for anyone wanting to promote youth participation in any field is:

EDUCATE THE ADULTS with whom they are attempting to participate.’

David Woollcombe, President, Peace Child International

[end of quote]

[box]

6 challenges around including young people in organizations’ boards

Length of appointment – sometimes members can only develop full understanding and make a real

contribution over the course of multiple terms, whereas youth representatives are usually replaced

after just one term.

Young people are unlikely to have expert knowledge of a practical area valuable to the board (such

as law or accounting).

There is often a lack of respect for young people’s contributions, even when they do have relevant

expertise or personal experience.

The youth brief is often limited to trivial or purely cosmetic areas.

Youth placed in a board environment for the first time can experience intense culture shock. As can

other board members who may therefore patronize and further limit the youth’s participation.

There may be a lack of proper briefing on organizational structures, history, policy and strategy.

[end of box]

[box]

Toolkits for including young people in organizational decision-making

How to successfully include young women in decision-making (Women’s Institute for Leadership

Development for Human Rights)

www.wildforhumanrights.org/hrtoolkit/callforinclusion/p7.html

Running a youth advisory council (McCreary Centre Society)

www.mcs.bc.ca/ya_yac.htm

Youth Involvement Toolkit (National Foster Youth Advisory Council) includes a resource on

intergenerational partnership

www.fyi3.com/fyi3/toolkit/index.cfm

Why and How to Involve Young People in Organizational Decision-Making and 14 Points to Successfully

Involving Youth in Decision Making (Youth on Board)

www.youthonboard.org/publications.htm

Sharing the Stage: a toolkit to help organizational decision-makers understand the importance of youth

participation (Children and Young People’s Commission of NSW, Australia).

www.kids.nsw.gov.au/files/sharingthestage2.pdf

Meaningful Youth Participation in International Conferences: A Case Study of the International Conference

on War-Affected Children (Canadian International Development Agency)

www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/INET/IMAGES.NSF/vLUImages/Childprotection/$file/war-affected-children.pdf

At the Table

www.atthetable.org/

[end of box]

Having youth as spokespeople

An official role of youth spokesperson within an organization’s structure can help engage other young

people – peer pressure is a powerful way of influencing youth. If people see others like them speaking out

on serious issues they are more likely to feel they could and should get involved – rather than something best

left to adults. Many organizations train young people to officially represent them in the community, at

school assemblies, and even in the media.

Free the Children

Free the Children (FTC) was founded in Canada in 1996 by Craig Kielburger, then 12 years old, after

reading an article about the murder of Iqbal Masih, a 14-year-old former child labourer and human rights

activist from Pakistan. Under the slogan “children helping children”, Free the Children quickly grew into a

human rights force, thanks to the dynamism of its founder, the support of his parents, and the administrative

skill of his 16-year-old brother. At 13, Craig went to India to meet with child labourers – a trip that

happened to coincide with a state visit by Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. Holding a press

conference demanding to meet with his PM to discuss India’s child rights record, Craig managed to “hijack”

the official trip in support of his cause. There followed more than 45 trips to meet with marginalized

children around the world. Free the Children has since mobilized 100,000 youth members in Canada and

elsewhere and has raised money to build hundreds of schools and distribute health kits. It has also developed

partnerships with bodies such as the Office of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General for

Children and Armed Conflict. Craig has remained central to Free the Children, advocating the cause through

passionate public addresses, and has been the subject of a book and award-winning documentary film. As

Craig is now a university student, there are valid questions about Free the Children’s longevity and its

reliance on its dynamic leader. Nevertheless Free the Children continues to grow and demonstrates the

power of young people as advocates among their peers.

www.freethechildren.org

[box]

key points

Well-known leader whose personal dynamism and media coverage has attracted huge support, both

financially and in membership terms.

One of the few large organizations established “by children for children”.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

Craig Kielburger

© Free the Children


UNICEF UK

UNICEF UK has recently recruited a group of six young people to represent the organization to their peers

and in the media. Through visits to UNICEF projects, the group learns about child rights, the skills needed to

teach these to others, and how to communicate UNICEF’s key messages through the media. The group is

supported by a London-based worker who coordinates its activities. Each member volunteers between 10

and 20 days to UNICEF over a two-year period. As there are so few of these posts, many young people who

are not selected are offered other opportunities within the organization.

www.therightssite.org.uk

[box

Good practices

Training in UNICEF’s work was provided. Sudan Correspondents

[end of box]

Sudan Correspondents

Sudan Correspondents was organized by mtvU, MTV’s US college network, in April 2005 to coincide with

the 11th anniversary of the start of the Rwandan genocide. mtvU selected three student correspondents for a

10-day mission to report on the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan. However, the Sudanese government

did not approve the students’ visas, so they instead toured a number of refugee camps in neighbouring Chad.

The trip was filmed and aired on mtvU as part of a day of programming dedicated to the crisis and linked to

STANDFast, a national day of student remembrance and action for Darfur.

www.mtvu.com/on_mtvu/activism/

[box]

Good practices

Young people used their peers’ media to present their message

[end of box]

[photo caption]

A refugee camp visited by “Sudan correspondents”

© MTV


Taking a life-cycle approach to young members

The needs of 14-year-olds are very different to those of 25-year-olds. So some of the organizations best at

involving youth in their structures segment the participation further. When they do this they may look at

youths’ varying levels and forms of education and financial circumstances. This ensures materials and

activities are targeted appropriately and that youth remain interested and involved over a longer period of

time, and throughout different stages of their lives. Interestingly, some of the most successful initiatives

have seen different segments of youth manage to complement each others’ specific skills.

[box]


Fieldworker Programme

In the last few years, AI Canada has made a concerted effort to involve youth and student members in its

volunteer Fieldworker Programme. This intensive programme is seen as an “intermediate structure” between

the membership and the staff, coordinating on-the-ground membership support and training, helping

establish groups, and supporting conflict resolution. Traditionally dominated by older members of AI

Canada, the Fieldworker Programme has been particularly popular with student graduates of the section’s

“Human Rights College” event, and has proved a useful way to retain younger people’s interest once they

leave the Youth and Student programme. The Fieldworker Programme has also adapted to become more

accessible to youth: training is now held on the weekend; youth are involved in running workshops; more

information is provided on organizing school groups; and it is more clearly communicated that costs are

covered by AI. Inbuilt mentorship between experienced and less experienced fieldworkers has been critical

to its success. Today, of the 80 committed volunteer Fieldworkers, about one third are young people and the

current Chair of the Fieldworker Council is a young member who attended the first Human Rights College.

[end of box]

[box]

USA groups

Inter-generational Partnership

In Madison, Wisconsin, USA, Local Group 139 and the University of Wisconsin-Madison student group

recently merged as both groups were dwindling in size and becoming less effective. The AI student group

was facing competition on campus from single issue groups (such as Students for Darfur) that had more

focused actions and demanded less of individuals’ time. The local group was failing to recruit younger

members. The merger required change and compromise on both sides. Students were used to meeting very

frequently but without set times, whereas the Local Group met only once a month on a regular date. Student

meetings were commonly held in very informal venues, but these did not have enough seating and were too

noisy for older participants. Meetings are now scheduled weekly and held in more formal campus locations.

The new merged group has benefited from the special circumstances of both the former groups: the students

are able to mobilize larger numbers of people around AI campaigns, are able to access meetings rooms for

free, and bring creative ideas and energy; the members of the former local group bring greater financial

resources, community connections (for example with local media or community officials), and more

experience of AI’s work and the resources and opportunities AI has to offer. One student notes, “Non

students/older folks widen the horizons of the students and take them out of their own world and small

campus territory”.

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Youth Involvement is all about partnership; working together as equals and having respect for the

contribution that young people make.’

Pip Collin, Youth Involvement Manager, Inspire Foundation

[end of quote]

Coordinating youth work nationally & internationally

In today’s globalizing world, the major advocacy issues and communications methods are international in

nature, such as global warming, child trafficking, and the internet. Luckily, this ties in very well with youth

interests and skills. The need for improved international communication and coalition building can be best

met with youth-run structures, and capitalize on lower barriers to international travel, increasing mobility

(especially with the EU), and the possibility of global online communications networks.

AEGEE

AEGEE is one of the biggest independent student associations in Europe with more than 17,000 members in

260 university chapters (“antennae”). Its mission is to promote a unified Europe and to foster democracy,

human rights, tolerance, mobility and a European dimension in education. Activities include action days on

key topics, case study trips and exchange projects, workshops, lobbying, summer universities, training,

publication and media. AEGEE has a unique and effective governance and management structure. Every six

months, a Europe-wide Agora assembly is held, determining priority issues and electing a Board of

Directors, composed of the President, Secretary, Treasurer and up to six additional members. The board not

only acts as the day-to-day Secretariat of the organization – lending it administrative support, meeting with

external parties and travelling to conferences across Europe – they also live together in the AEGEE

headquarters, a large three-storey house in Brussels, Belgium.

www.aegee.org

[box]

Good practices

Lack of national structures (only local and regional) makes for a flatter, faster governance structure,

attractive in an age of globalization.

Mobility within the European Union (in terms of right to work) enables AEGEE board members to

travel from their countries to work together in Brussels.

[end of box]

AIESEC International

AIESEC International is one of the world’s largest student organizations with a presence on nearly 1,000

campuses worldwide. Totally student-run, AIESEC’s primary activity is organizing a large scale

international work placement programme for students. While much of AIESEC’s work is devolved to

national and local level volunteers, global coordination is provided by a six-member International Secretariat

in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The six directors are elected from among the membership by delegates of the

59 participating countries, and are provided with a salary and accommodation. There is a formal eight-week

transition period each year to facilitate directorship hand-over.

www.aiesec.org

[box]

Good practices

Knowledge management is key to ensuring successful transition during institutionalized turnover in

staff.

AIESEC has a successful business model which enables it to fully and consistently cover the costs

of its International Secretariat and the international travel involved.

[end of box]

[box]

AIUSA Plugged In Newsletter.

AIUSA produces a monthly e-newsletter, Plugged In, designed for teenagers and students. Distributed to

more than 20,000 members and non-members (sign-up is available on the www.amnestyusa.org website),

the newsletter includes an update on AI’s campaigns, news, resources, events and partnerships. The

newsletter is designed in HTML, includes pictures and has a simple, clean design.

http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/newsletter/

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Adults must get out of the way – young people are best able to engage in collective behaviour, self-policing,

and motivating the group, in the absence of adult involvement.’

Justine Cassell, Professor of Media, Technology and Society, Northwestern University

[end of quote]

[box]

7 reasons youth work may fail in large organizations

The failure to allocate even one dedicated person to working with young people.

An automatic allocation of the youth brief to the most junior person in the organization (on the

assumption that younger people are more in touch with youth) without consideration of the

relevancy of their skills or abilities – not only does this often mean unqualified people are given the

youth brief, but they struggle to obtain the necessary resources and profile for youth work within the

organization.

A failure to recognize youth work as strategic or important by senior management. This means they

do not consider youth dimensions when developing new programmes and policies. It is instead left

to the youth coordinator to “tack on” something, which is consequently likely to be poorly

integrated, lacking in resources, and ineffectively implemented.

An undue focus on (and even restrictive policies around) recruiting people based on qualifications

they hold rather than on demonstrated experience of engaging and organizing young people.

An over-dependence on an isolated youth programme, as opposed to mainstreaming responsibility

for youth engagement across the organization.

A failure to focus on ongoing documentation, evaluation and knowledge management to enable

effective staff transition. Particularly common (and has the most disastrous consequences) in

organizations where the most junior (and often quickly promoted) person is allocated to the youth

brief.

A lack of training and professional development provided to youth coordinators (for example around

youth participation methodologies or child protection policies), probably because of an un-stated

sense by management that youth engagement is “not really a professional discipline”.

[end of box]

Youth meetings and advisory councils

If young people are to remain committed to an organization, and work productively within its structures,

they need motivation, inspiration, and sometimes just a sounding board. Conferences, forums, camps and

advisory council meetings give young people the opportunity to experience other cultures, share

perspectives, undertake training, and develop collaborative projects. The better events are not “one-offs” but

are milestones within much broader programmes.

World Scout Jamboree

World Scout Jamboree is a gathering of Scouts from all over the world for 10 days of activities and cultural

exchange held about every four years. About 40,000 young people are expected to camp, live and work

alongside each other at the 21st Jamboree, which will be held in the UK in the summer of 2007. The theme

of the event will be “One World, One Promise”, and a major feature will be the Global Development Village

which will include workshops, discussions and interactive exhibits about key global challenges and ways in

which Scouts can make practical contributions towards solving these problems. Most previous World Scout

Jamborees have been held in the North, although the last two events were in Chile (1999) and Thailand

(2002). Up to 10 smaller regional Jamborees are also held each year.

www.scouting2007.org/english/2007/introduction.php

[box]

Good practices

Huge scale of the event makes it a once in a lifetime experience.

[end of box]

[box]

key point

Strong tradition and history behind the gathering.

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Try to connect with everyone on a personal level: learn about people’s individual interests and link them to

your vision.’

Maja Andjelkovic, International Institute for Sustainable Development

[end of quote]

Junior Summit 1998

Junior Summit 1998 was an ambitious initiative organized by the media laboratory of Massachusetts

Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, following up an earlier event in Japan in 1995. MIT invited young

people (ages 10-16) to apply to participate by sending in essays, pictures, stories and ideas about ways in

which technology could improve people’s lives. Three thousand youth were selected, and connected in a

three-month online discussion. Many of the youth had never had access to the Internet, and MIT paid

for their connections, travelling to remote locations in developing countries to install computers and satellite

connections. The purpose-built online community featured innovative use of “gisted translation” on email,

enabling participants to communicate across languages. For many of the participants, it was a life-changing

opportunity to form friendships across borders and speak with other youth living where “global news” was

breaking. After two months, MIT invited participants to elect from among themselves 100 representatives to

meet face-to-face and present their ideas to world leaders, including a video conference audience with the

UN General Assembly. At the close of the event, several innovative youth projects were launched (although

MIT provided only modest support for these initiatives). The total project cost was more than US$2million,

donated by corporate sponsors.

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/1998/summit-1125.html

[box]

Good practices

Sheer size and scope of the programme made young people feel valued and committed to its success.

Because the programme began with an online forum, a communications infrastructure was already

in place when delegates went home enabling them to keep in touch (compared with most youth

conferences where delegates find it hard to have meaningful dialogue online after the intensity of the

real-life experience).

[end of box]

ReachOut

ReachOut is a popular online portal providing youth in Australia with information on preventative health

care, with an emphasis on mental health. At the time of its launch in 1998, the organization also established

a Youth Advisory Board to give young people aged 16-21 the opportunity to contribute to the development

and promotion of ReachOut and the programmes of its parent organization, the Inspire Foundation. Young

people apply online to participate and ReachOut selects 18 young people three times a year. During their

term, the Advisory Board members work together on online forums to develop ways to improve the service.

After 10 weeks, their forum discussions are consolidated in a three-day skills workshop in Sydney, Australia,

where members are also invited to continue volunteering as Youth Ambassadors. Youth currently contribute

around 80 per cent of the online content on ReachOut and each Advisory Board member provides valuable

promotional support in their local community. The Inspire Foundation employs a full-time Youth

Coordinator to support the Advisory Board.

www.reachout.asn.au

[box]

Good practices

Combination of online and face-to-face engagement equips youth with relevant skills, self-

confidence, and sense of shared purpose.

[end of box]

[photo caption]

A meeting of ReachOut’s Youth Advisory Board

© Inspire Foundation


[box]

13 reasons why youth networking events may fail

Unclear objectives – it needs more than “we should hold a youth conference/event/workshop”.

Thinking about everything except delegate recruitment or leaving delegate recruitment to the last

minute.

Only having delegates (by choice or otherwise) that have been to many previous conferences.

Having important but boring organizational stakeholders as “keynote speakers” or providing

“background”.

Having boring speakers (young, old, internal, external) in general.

Using venues without the flexibility to adapt to last-minute format changes in meetings – such as

additional break-out groups.

Expecting youth to come up with an agreed event communiqué by consensus, especially when

beginning the process of writing and approving such a communiqué late in the schedule.

Keeping it too serious during the day and separating out the fun stuff (performance, social events,

cultural activities) to limited times in the evening.

Lacking diversity in formats rather than scheduling a range of workshops, small group discussions,

multimedia presentations, cultural performance, role-plays, games and group exercises and so on.

Seeing the event as “repeatable one-off”, rather than as part of a longer-term programme directly

connected to the overall mission of the organization.

Thinking that this is the first time such an event has ever been held, failing to research, or form

partnerships with others.

Assuming all the youth will remain in close contact with event organizers; for example, expecting to

be able to gather evaluation forms and other vital feedback from the youth after they return home.

Believing that because the participant surveys say “100 per cent of youth think there should be

another conference” this is a reliable indicator that everything was perfect!

[end of box]

[box]

Toolkits for Evaluating Youth Programming

Evaluation Toolkit for Community Youth Programmes

www.offordcentre.com/rsd/hac/ (Offord Centre for Child Studies)

Checking the Scoreboard: Assessing how well youth participation is working in your organization (Children

and Young People’s Commission of NSW, Australia)

www.kids.nsw.gov.au/publications/tps_scoreboard.html

[end of box]

[quote]

‘Think big, take risks and follow through’

Richard Curtain, Curtain Consulting (clients include UN Youth Programme)

[end of quote]

Glossary

Blog: a public page on the Internet, usually created by an individual, upon which they post entries much like

an online diary. Generally blog entries include text, links to other websites and blogs, and pictures. Visitors

often post comments.

Blackberry: small, hand-held technology device (cross between computer and mobile phone) which allows

you to check and send email wirelessly.

Caucus: common term used at the UN (and in other political processes) to describe a loose grouping or

regular meeting of participants based on a shared identity or goal.

Communiqué: a public document produced by participants at the conclusion of a conference describing their

shared vision.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR): a term used to describe a company’s broader responsibility to society,

as opposed to responsibility purely to generate financial profits for shareholders.

Discussion boards: a space on the Internet where website visitors can quickly post messages that can be seen

by other users and replied to, like a virtual conversation.

Google advertising: advertising on the popular Internet search-engine by keywords which appear alongside

search results.

Meet-up: a physical gathering of people, often strangers, around a shared interest, organized through the

Internet.

Mini-grant: a small grant provided to youth to support a local project

Peer-to-peer: a technical term that has come into mainstream usage to describe connections made or activity

directly between individuals rather than through a hierarchical organization or centralized system.

Public Service Announcement (PSA): advertising with a message created by charities, the government or

interest groups, often (in the case of non-political spots) using donated air space.

Social entrepreneur: an individual who uses techniques traditionally employed by business to find an

innovative solution to a social concern.

SMS (‘Short Message Service)/Texting: commonly refers to sending a short message between mobile

phones.

Spoken word: an artistic performance where poetry (or other lyrics) are put to music, but still spoken rather

than sung.

Video conferencing: a communications technology where participants can see as well as hear each other –

while satellite and dedicated lines provide a premium product, Internet video conferencing is also now high

quality using broadband.

Viral: a term used in a marketing context to refer to messages spread through existing personal or social

networks rather than through the mass media.

Viral email forward: an evolution of traditional “word of mouth” promotion, whereby people pass on a

funny or interesting email to their contact list – marketers and activists are now developing emails

specifically to encourage forwarding.

Zines: a style of “do it yourself” magazine, usually containing alternative-style content, with limited

distribution generally through independent bookstores, music shops, cafés, and concerts.

[inside back cover]

Amnesty International Publications

International Secretariat

Peter Benenson House

1 Easton Street

London, WC1X 0DW, United Kingdom

Tel: +44 (0) 20 7413 5500

Fax: +44 (0) 20 7956 1157

www.amnesty.org

[email protected]

AI Index: ACT 76/003/2006

ISBN: 0-86210-397-5

Written by: Nick Moraitis, Consultant

Printed by Alden Press, Oxford, UK

© 2006, Amnesty International

All rights reserved. This publication is copyright, but may be reproduced by any method without fee for

advocacy, campaiging and teaching purposes, but not for resale. The copyright holders request that all such

use be registered with them for impact assessment purposes. For copying in any other circumstances, or for

re-use in other publications, or for translation or adaptation, prior written permission must be obtained from

the publishers, and a fee may be payable. Nick Moraitis is a consultant in social change communications.

Most recently he served as Strategy and Partnership Coordinator for TakingITGlobal, an international youth

organization that runs the most popular global online community for young people interested in social

change. Through TakingITGlobal or as a consultant, Nick has delivered or advised on youth programming

for among others, UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP, the Global Knowledge Partnership, Oxfam International, and

International Telecommunications Union. An Australian, he has served on several of his government’s

delegations to UN meetings, held terms on the Australian National Commission for UNESCO and the

advisory council of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the author of “Cyberscene” (published

by Penguin). Opinions expressed in this booklet are those of the author, and cannot be deemed to reflect the

views of Amnesty International.

A note on methodology

Several approaches have been followed to identify and describe the good practices included in this paper.

Analysis of youth trends are based on the author’s own experience organizing youth programmes, a

literature review, commercial market research, and a survey of young Amnesty International members

conducted in early 2005. Descriptions of external best practices are largely based on the authors’ own

knowledge, as well as a web review and some liaison with organizations exhibiting good practices. For good

practices internal to Amnesty International, a Call for Submissions was distributed to Amnesty International

Youth and Student Coordinators and follow-up interviews were held with several national AI sections.

Almost by definition, this area of work is experiencing constant change and innovation – it is to be expected

that some of the websites listed may not be accessible in the future, so do not delay – visit them while they

are available!

Amnesty International does not endorse all the organizations or examples featured but all illustrate some

good or interesting practice from which AI and others may be able to learn.

This book is of course not comprehensive. We hope it will become a ‘living document’ and we are interested

in learning about new examples, particularly from the global south. Please contact [email protected]

Special thanks

The author thanks Denise Searle, Martin Clark, Hilary Payne, Daniel Scott, Sheila Goncalves and Lucia

Hernandez of the AI International Secretariat for commissioning this publication and collaborating around

its preparation, and Lindsay Warmington for design. For case study contributions and advice thanks go to AI

staff in London and around the world, as well as Nicole Palasz (New Tactics in Human Rights Project),

Emily Freeburg (Lutheran World Federation), Karthik Balasubramanian (US National Youth Measles

Campaign), and Tom Burke (consultant to Save the Children). Much appreciation also to the other members

of AI’s International Youth Strategy Development Committee – Hanna Roberts (AI International Executive

Committee), Shauna Maclean (AI Canada), Paula Akugizibwe (AI South Africa), Elena Belletti (AI Italy),

and Steve Mokwena (Modjadjiworks) for providing a solid guiding framework for this project.

[back cover]

AI wants to engage more young people – to grow, to be more effective, to serve a changing world. Drawn

from countless conversations with experts and campaigners in NGOs of all shapes and sizes around the

world, this book provides advice, case studies, best practice suggestions, toolkits and personal tips.

The structure of the book links in with the organization’s new Youth Strategy and reflects the fact the world

has changed – young people are becoming more active in many new, smaller ways, but less active in the

more traditional, larger ways, such as sit ins, demonstrations and protests.

Here, we detail that shift and point to the organizations that have grabbed a surf board and jumped on the

new youth wave.

This wave is swelled by technology, information and a growing realization that young people should be

involved in decisions made about them.

AI Index: ACT 76/003/2006

youth activism engagement participation...activism and participation – and attempt to say why they...

Documents

Transcript of youth activism engagement participation...activism and participation – and attempt to say why they...